|
Golden Poison Frog
The golden poison frog (''Phyllobates terribilis''), also known as the golden dart frog or golden poison arrow frog, is a poison dart frog endemism, endemic from the rainforests of Colombia. The golden poison frog has become endangered due to habitat destruction within its naturally limited range. Despite its small size, this frog is considered to be the most poisonous extant animal species on the planet. Taxonomy and etymology The golden poison frog was described as ''Phyllobates terribilis'' in 1978 by herpetologists Charles W. Myers and Borys Malkin as well as biochemist John W. Daly; the species name ''terribilis'' is a reference to the deadly toxins present in the skin secretions of this species. Myers' research was based on hundreds of specimens collected on an expedition to the Quebrada Guangui and La Brea regions of the Colombian rainforest, and a breeding colony of 18 frogs established at the American Museum of Natural History. Distribution and habitat The golden poi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paratrechina
''Paratrechina'' is one of seven ant genera (alongside '' Euprenolepis, Nylanderia, Paraparatrechina, Prenolepis, Pseudolasius,'' and '' Zatania'') in the ''Prenolepis'' genus-group from the subfamily Formicinae (tribe Lasiini). Six species are included in ''Paratrechina''; one of which, the longhorn crazy ant ('' Paratrechina longicornis''), is a widespread, pantropical pest. Distribution Most ''Paratrechina'' species are native to sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar, but one species, ''Paratrechina umbra'', has only been found in southern China and is native to Southeast Asia. The only species found outside of these regions is ''Paratrechina longicornis'', which has been introduced by humans to tropical areas across the globe. The native range of ''Paratrechina longicornis'' is currently unknown, but it is thought to be of either African or Asian origin. Although ''Paratrechina longicornis'' has been found in undisturbed habitats in Southeast Asia, the Afrotropics are th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sodium Channel
Sodium channels are integral membrane proteins that form ion channels, conducting sodium ions (Na+) through a cell (biology), cell's cell membrane, membrane. They belong to the Cation channel superfamily, superfamily of cation channels. Classification They are classified into 2 types: Function In excitable cells such as neurons, muscle, myocytes, and certain types of glia, sodium channels are responsible for the Action potential#Stimulation and rising phase, rising phase of action potentials. These channels go through three different states called resting, active and inactive states. Even though the resting and inactive states would not allow the ions to flow through the channels the difference exists with respect to their structural conformation. Selectivity Sodium channels are highly selective for the transport of ions across cell membranes. The high selectivity with respect to the sodium ion is achieved in many different ways. All involve encapsulation of the sodium ion in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melyridae
Melyridae (common name: soft-winged flower beetles) are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. Description Most are elongate-oval, soft-bodied beetles 10 mm long or less. Many are brightly patterned in black and brown, yellow, or red. Some melyrids ( Malachiinae) have peculiar orange structures along the sides of the abdomen, which may be everted and saclike or withdrawn into the body and inconspicuous. Some melyrids have the two basal antennomeres greatly enlarged. Most adults and larvae are predaceous, but many are common on flowers. The most common North American species belong to the genus ''Collops'' ( Malachiinae); ''C. quadrimaculatus'' is reddish, with two bluish black spots on each elytron. Four New Guinean species of '' Choresine'' (the more abundant '' C. pulchra'', the less abundant '' C. semiopaca'' and the two infrequent '' C. rugiceps'' and '' C. sp. A'', the latter as yet unnamed) have been found to contain batrachotoxins, which may account ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Choresine
''Choresine'' is a genus of beetles that belong to the family Melyridae. This genus of beetle is known to have high levels of batrachotoxins and is believed to be a possible toxin source for Pitohui and Blue-capped ifrit birds in New Guinea. Collections from Herowana in the Eastern Highlands Province that tested positive for batrachotoxins included the more abundant '' C. pulchra'', the less abundant '' C. semiopaca'' and the two infrequent '' C. rugiceps'' and '' C. sp. A'', the latter as yet unnamed. The locals advise against allowing these beetles to touch the eyes or sweaty face as a severe burning sensation can result. These species are all described as having metallic blue-violaceous elytra and a yellow and blackish pronotum. The name "nanisani" is used by villagers in Herowana equally for this group of insects, the numbing, tingling, burning sensation they cause and the Blue-capped ifrit. The hypothesis that ''Phyllobates'' frogs in South America obtain batrachotoxins ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean north of Australia. It has Indonesia–Papua New Guinea border, a land border with Indonesia to the west and neighbours Australia to the south and the Solomon Islands to the east. Its capital, on its southern coast, is Port Moresby. The country is the world's third largest list of island countries, island country, with an area of . The nation was split in the 1880s between German New Guinea in the North and the Territory of Papua, British Territory of Papua in the South, the latter of which was ceded to Australia in 1902. All of present-day Papua New Guinea came under Australian control following World War I, with the legally distinct Territory of New Guinea being established out of the former German colony as a League of Nations mandate. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toxic Bird
Toxic birds are birds that use toxins to defend themselves from predators. Although no known bird actively injects or produces venom, toxic birds sequester poison from animals and plants they consume, especially poisonous insects. Species include the pitohui and ifrita birds from Papua New Guinea, the European quail, the spur-winged goose, Hoopoe, hoopoes, the bronzewing pigeon, and the red warbler. The pitohui, the ifrita, and the Rufous shrikethrush, rufous or little shrikethrush all sequester batrachotoxin in their skin and feathers. The African spur-winged goose is toxic to eat as it sequesters poison in its tissues, from the blister beetles that it feeds on. European quail are also known to be toxic and are able to cause coturnism at certain stages in their migrations. Initial research The first research done on toxic birds was published in 1992 by Dumbacher ''et al.'', which found traces of the neurotoxin homobatrachotoxin, a steroid alkaloid with the ability to polarize Na+ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phyllobates
''Phyllobates'' is a genus of poison dart frogs native to Central and South America, from Nicaragua to Colombia. There are 3 different Colombian species of ''Phyllobates'', considered highly toxic species due to the poison they contain in the wild. ''Phyllobates'' contains the most poisonous species of frog, the golden poison frog (''P. terribilis''). They are typical of the poison dart frogs, in that all species have bright warning coloration (aposematism), and have varying degrees of toxicity. Only species of ''Phyllobates'' are used by natives of South American tribes as sources of poison for their hunting darts. The most toxic of the many poisonous alkaloids these frogs contain (in glands in their skin) is batrachotoxin, alongside a wide variety of other toxic compounds. Some populations of ''Phyllobates lugubris'' in Central America are not known to be toxic. Taxonomy ''Phyllobates'' (Ancient Greek for "leaf climber") used to contain many of the species which are now withi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Batrachotoxin
Batrachotoxin (BTX) is an extremely potent cardiotoxic and neurotoxic steroidal alkaloid found in certain species of beetles, birds, and frogs. The name is from the Greek word . Structurally-related chemical compounds are often referred to collectively as batrachotoxins. In certain frogs, this alkaloid is present mostly on the skin. Such frogs are among those used for poisoning darts. Batrachotoxin binds to and irreversibly opens the sodium channels of nerve cells and prevents them from closing, resulting in paralysis and death. No antidote is known. History Batrachotoxin was discovered by Fritz Märki and Bernhard Witkop, at the National Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, U.S.A. Märki and Witkop separated the potent toxic alkaloids fraction from '' Phyllobates bicolor'' and determined its chemical properties in 1963. They isolated four major toxic steroidal alkaloids including batrachotoxin, homobatrachotoxin (is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Erythrolamprus Epinephalus
''Erythrolamprus epinephalus'', the Fire-bellied snake, is a species of snake in the Colubridae family. It is found in Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Peru. The snake, which was described by Edward Drinker Cope in 1862, is notable for its apparent immunity to the toxic skin of the golden poison dart frog, which it preys upon. Classification ''Erythrolamprus epinephalus'' belongs to the genus '' Erythrolamprus'', which contains over 50 species. The genus ''Erythrolamprus'' belongs to the subfamily Dipsadinae, which is sometimes referred to as the family Dipsadidae. Recent phylogenetic analysis of morphological and molecular DNA evidence has shown that ''Erythrolamprus epinephalus'' is now likely paraphyletic, with respect to ''Erythrolamprus pseudoreginae'' of Tobago, named in 2019. The relationships of ''Erythrolamprus'' species located in northern South America can be shown in the cladogram A cladogram (from Greek language, Greek ''clados'' "branch" ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bromeliad
The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a Family (biology), family of monocot flowering plants of about 80 genera and 3700 known species, native mainly to the Tropics, tropical Americas, with several species found in the American subtropics and one in tropical west Africa, ''Pitcairnia feliciana''. It is among the basal (phylogenetics), basal families within the Poales and is the only family within the order that has Septal nectary, septal nectaries and Ovary (plants), inferior ovaries.Judd, Walter S. Plant systematics a phylogenetic approach. 3rd ed. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, Inc., 2007. These Ovary (plants), inferior ovaries characterize the Bromelioideae, a subfamily of the Bromeliaceae. The family includes both epiphytes, such as Spanish moss (''Tillandsia usneoides''), and Terrestrial plant, terrestrial species, such as the pineapple (''Ananas comosus''). Many bromeliads are able to store water in a structure formed by their tightly overlapping leaf bases. However, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leaf Litter
Plant litter (also leaf litter, tree litter, soil litter, litterfall, or duff) is dead plant material (such as leaves, bark, needles, twigs, and cladodes) that has fallen to the ground. This detritus or dead organic material and its constituent nutrients are added to the top layer of soil, commonly known as the litter layer or O-horizon ("O" for "organic"). Litter is an important factor in ecosystem dynamics, as it is indicative of ecological productivity and may be useful in predicting regional nutrient cycling and soil fertility. Characteristics and variability Litterfall is characterized as fresh, undecomposed, and easily recognizable (by species and type) plant debris. This can be anything from leaves, cones, needles, twigs, bark, seeds/nuts, logs, or reproductive organs (e.g. the stamen of flowering plants). Items larger than 2 cm diameter are referred to as coarse litter, while anything smaller is referred to as fine litter or litter. The type of litterfall is m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
