Poison Arrow Frog

Family: Dendrobatid                              Central and South America

Frogs are equipped with irritant-producing skin glands, but the secretions of the poison-arrow frogs are the equivalent of chemical warfare. In fact, one species of these brightly colored, terrestrial amphibians can kill a person with just four ten-millionths of an ounce of its home brew.  A single frog -- skewered and gently heated -- produces enough toxins to arm three or four dozen arrow tips, which local Indians use to hunt monkeys, deer and jaguars. So while the frogs don't employ their world-class venom to bring down prey (for them it's a defense mechanism), humans have learned to harness the mayhem.