Background Information:

There are some very dangerous frogs in the Amazon. There are some documented accounts of travelers touching some species of the Dart-Poison Frog and going blind and even death. In the natural environment, some Dart -Poison Frogs eat ants and develop the toxin dangerous to man from their diet. The Formic Acid in ants has a toxicity impact on the frog's poison. Most of the very dangerous Dart -Poison frogs do not live in Manu, but in other parts of the Amazon and in Central America. For optional research at the secondary level, students might want to research the more dangerous frogs. They are Phyllobates bicolor and Phylobates terribilis.

There are several species of Dendrobates that are also considered Dart-Poison Frogs and are very dangerous to the touch. These frogs are very colorful and use these colors as warning signs for preditors. Also, there are many non-poisonous frogs that mimic the colors of the dangerous ones for protection. (Interview, Harry Ward, Associate Curator of Reptiles, Detroit Zoological Society, Royal Oak, Michigan, October 17, 1997.)

There are many species of Dart-Poison Frogs in Peru. I have chosen the following for location either near by or in Manu itself. In my research, I have chosen the Manu Poison Frog, (Epipedobates macera), Peruvian Poison Frog, (Epipedobates petersi), Spot-Legged Poison Frog, (Epipedobates pictus) Silverstones Poison Frog, (Epipedobates silverstonei), Brilliant-Thighed Poison Frog, ( Epipedobates femoralis), Three Striped Poison Frog, Epipedobates trivitttatus), Sira Poison Frog, (Dendrobates sirensis), Biolat Poison Frog, (Dendrobates biolat), and the Mimic Poison Frog, (Dendrobates imitator). (Walls, Jerry G. Jewels of the Rainforest, Poison Frogs of the Family Dendrobatidae, TFH Publications, 1994, Neptune City, N.J., pages 174, 197,212,229,239,236 and 234.)

Materials Needed:

• A copy of the PBS program, The Living Edens: "Manu, Peru's Hidden Rain Forest" (If you missed The Living Edens "Manu" program that aired on November 12, 1997 you can order the video)
• Downloaded templates of the Manu frogs with color guide: Template 1, Template 2, Template 3, and Template 4. (All data on color and size from: Walls, Jerry G. , Jewels of the Rainforest, Poison Frogs of the Family Dendrobatidae, TFH Publications, 1994, Neptune City, N.J.)
• Paper /Pencil for research data
• Colored pencils, markers, crayons or school paint
• One sheet of poster board, size optional, for each student
• Scissors
• School glue
• Lettering stencil (optional for neatness)
• Student science journals