Poison dart frog is the common name of a group of frogs in the family Dendrobatidae which are native to tropical Central and South America. These species are diurnal and often have brightly colored bodies. This bright coloration is correlated with the toxicity of the species, making them aposematic. Some species of the family Dendrobatidae exhibit extremely bright coloration along with high toxicity — a feature derived from their diet of ants, mites and termites— while species which eat a much larger variety of prey have cryptic coloration with minimal to no amount of observed toxicity. Many species of this family are threatened due to human infrastructure encroaching on their habitats.
The strawberry poison frog, strawberry poison-dart frog or blue jeans poison frog is a species of small poison dart frog found in Central America. It is common throughout its range, which extends from eastern central Nicaragua through Costa Rica and northwestern Panamá. The species is often found in humid lowlands and premontane forest, but large populations are also found in disturbed areas such as plantations. The strawberry poison frog is perhaps most famous for its widespread variation in coloration, comprising approximately 15–30 color morphs, most of which are presumed to be true-breeding. O. pumilio, while not the most poisonous of the dendrobatids, is the most toxic member of its genus.
Dendrobates is a genus of poison dart frogs native to Central and South America. It once contained numerous species, but most originally placed in this genus have been split off into other genera such as Adelphobates, Ameerega, Andinobates, Epipedobates, Excidobates, Oophaga, Phyllobates and Ranitomeya, leaving only five large to medium-sized species in the genus Dendrobates. All the other genera used to be grouped in with Dendrobates because it was previously thought that all brightly colored poison dart frogs came from the same ancestor but this has since been proven to be incorrect. Dendrobates and Phyllobates evolved conspicuous coloration from the same common ancestor but not the same as any of the other genera listed above.
Ranitomeya imitator, is a species of poison dart frog found in the north-central region of eastern Peru. Its common names include mimic poison frog and poison arrow frog, and it is one of the best known dart frogs. It was discovered in the late 1980s by Rainer Schulte who later split it up into more subspecies; describing each as a specific color morph, and sometimes having a separate behavioral pattern. The acoustics, morphs, and behavior of the species have been extensively researched.
The Aromobatidae are a family of frogs native to Central and South America. They are sometimes referred to as cryptic forest frogs or cryptic poison frogs. They are the sister taxon of the Dendrobatidae, the poison dart frogs, but are not as toxic as most dendrobatids are.
The polkadot poison frog is a species of frogs in the family Dendrobatidae endemic to Panama, where it is known as rana venenosa in Spanish. Its natural habitats are humid lowland and montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss and is listed by the IUCN as being "critically endangered".
The yellow-bellied poison frog, yellow-bellied poison-arrow frog, or yellowbelly poison frog is a species of frog in the family Dendrobatidae. It is found in northwestern Colombia and east-central Panama.
The granular poison frog or granular poison arrow frog is a species of frog in the family Dendrobatidae, found in Costa Rica and Panama. Originally described as Dendrobates granuliferus, it was moved to Oophaga in 1994. Its natural habitats are tropical humid lowland forests; it is threatened by habitat loss.
The blue-bellied poison frog or bluebelly poison frog is a species of frog in the family Dendrobatidae.
Ranitomeya vanzolinii, also known as the Brazilian poison frog or spotted poison frog, is a species of frog in the Ranitomeya genus, from the poison dart frog family, Dendrobatidae. It is found in the Amazonian rainforests of Brazil and Perú, and possibly Bolivia.
The green poison frog is a species of frog in the family Dendrobatidae. They are a small green colored frog, approximately 14-16 millimeters in size. Their color is a uniform green with brighter green back and legs, while the ventral side of the frog is metallic. It is endemic to the western slope of the Cordillera Occidental, Colombia.
Andinobates virolinensis is a species of frog in the family Dendrobatidae. It is endemic to Colombia where it is confined to the Santander and Cundinamarca departments on the Cordillera Oriental.
Ameerega is a genus of poison dart frogs in the family Dendrobatidae. These frogs live around rocks that are nearby streams. They are found in central South America north to Panama. It contains many former species of the genus Epipedobates.
Ranitomeya is a genus of dart poison frogs found in Panama and South America south to Peru and Brazil, possibly into Bolivia.
Dendrobatinae is the main subfamily of frogs in the family Dendrobatidae, the poison dart frogs of Central and South America, found from Nicaragua to the Amazon basin in Brazil.
Andinobates abditus is a species of poison dart frog, sometimes known as the Collins' poison frog. It is endemic to Ecuador where it is only known from its type locality, at the eastern base of the Reventador volcano, in the Napo Province.
The Rockstone poison dart frog is a poorly known species of dendrobatid frogs endemic to Guyana. As it is known from only one specimen, very little information is currently available on D. nubeculosus. It has been suggested to be one of the most poorly known species in the world.
Andinobates is a genus of poison dart frogs from Ecuador, Colombia and Panama. It contains species formerly classified in the genus Dendrobates and in 2006 transferred to the genus Ranitomeya. In 2011 Twomey, Brown, and their colleagues erected the genus Andinobates for a group of 12 species of Ranitomeya. Andinobates frogs can be distinguished from their sister taxon Ranitomeya anatomically in that their 2nd and 3rd vertebrae are fused. They show no limb reticulation, which is present in most species of Ranitomeya.
Andinobates dorisswansonae, the dotted poison frog, is a species of amphibian in the family Dendrobatidae, endemic to Colombia in the outskirts of Falan and north of the department of Tolima. It is toxic to humans.
Andinobates tolimensis, the Tolimense poison frog, is a species of amphibian in the family Dendrobatidae, endemic to Colombia in the outskirts of Falan and north of the department of Tolima. Previously it was included in the genus Ranitomeya, but was reclassified in Andinobates, along with 11 other species. It is threatened by habitat loss. It is toxic to humans and when captured will excrete a milky substance.
