Glands in the skin of poison-dart frogs protect from predators via a secreted neurotoxin called batrachotoxin.

“Yet another type of skin is the poison gland which is prevalent among amphibians, including the common toad…The most lethal frogs are a few Phyllobates species: named batrachotoxin, their poison is 250 times stronger than strychnine, and acts on the nervous system.” (Foy and Oxford Scientific Films 1982:80)

Foy S, Oxford Scientific Films. The Grand Design: Form and Colour in Animals. Lingfield, Surrey, U.K.: BLA Publishing Limited for J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd, London; 1982. 238 p.

Last Updated August 18, 2016