The lovely poison frog or lovely poison-arrow frog (''Phyllobates lugubris'') is a species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" '' Triadobatrachus'' is ...

in the family

Dendrobatidae Poison dart frog (also known as dart-poison frog, poison frog or formerly known as poison arrow 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 ...

. It is found on the Caribbean versant of

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

from southeastern

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean Sea, Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to ...

through Costa Rica to northwestern

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

, with one record just west of the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a Channel ( ...

. Populations from the Pacific versant, formerly included in this species, are now identified as '' Phyllobates vittatus''. Phyllobates lugubris map-fr

Description

Adult males measure and females in snout–vent length. Maxillary teeth are present. The dorsum is black with a pair of dorsolateral stripes, typically pale yellow to gold or orange, running along the sides of the dorsum from near the hindlimbs to the snout. The limbs are usually mottled with yellow–greenish yellow. The ventral surfaces are mottled with extensive black pigment, often to an extent that gives nearly solid black appearance. While ''P. lugubris'' is normally toxic like other related species, some populations in Central America are not known to be toxic.Daly, J.W. (1995). The chemistry of poisons in amphibian skin. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 92: 9-13.

Habitat and conservation

''Phyllobates lugubris'' inhabits humid lowland forests (marginally the premontane forests) at elevations of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''. The ...

. It can also occur in secondary growth and plantations. It is diurnal and terrestrial. Adult frogs are often found by rocky sections of forest streams. Eggs are laid in dry leaf-litter. The hatching

tadpole A tadpole is the larval stage in the biological life cycle of an amphibian. Most tadpoles are fully aquatic, though some species of amphibians have tadpoles that are terrestrial. Tadpoles have some fish-like features that may not be found ...

s are transported by males to forest streams to complete the larval development. General

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

and pollution are potential threats to this species. Chytrid fungus, ''

Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis ''Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis'' ( ), also known as ''Bd'' or the amphibian chytrid fungus, is a fungus that causes the disease chytridiomycosis in amphibians. Since its discovery in 1998 by Lee Berger, the disease devastated amphibian popula ...

'', has been detected in museum specimens but its impact on natural populations is unknown. ''Phyllobates lugubris'' is sometimes present in the pet trade, with some illegal collection occurring. It is listed in the

CITES Appendix II CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of interna ...

. It is present in several protected areas.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q144562 Phyllobates Amphibians of Costa Rica Amphibians of Nicaragua Amphibians of Panama Taxa named by Eduard Oscar Schmidt Amphibians described in 1857 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot