Poison frogs, quick guide

Abstract

What are poison frogs? Poison frogs, also commonly called ‘dart poison frogs’ or ‘poison arrow frogs’, are charismatic amphibians forming a spectacular adaptive radiation, comparable to that of African cichlids. Many of the diurnally active species have skin toxins and bright coloration (Figure 1), and display numerous terrestrial reproductive modes including elaborate parental care and complex social behaviors. The most diverse and well-studied group, superfamily Dendrobatoidea, consists of two families, Dendrobatidae and Aromobatidae, and is found from Nicaragua to northern South America. Although less popular, other groups known as poison frogs exist in South America (family Bufonidae, genus Melanophryniscus), Madagascar (family Mantellidae) and Australia (family Myobatrachidae, genus Pseudophryne), as well as two species in Cuba (family Eleutherodactylidae). Here, we focus on the traditional ‘poison frogs’, the dendrobatids.