within the same family (Melyridae), several of which are found in Colombia. Frogs raised in captivity do not produce batrachotoxin, and thus may be handled without risk. However, this limits the amount of batrachotoxin available for research as 10,000 frogs yielded only 180 mg of batrachotoxin. As these frogs are endangered, their harvest is unethical. Biosynthetic studies are also challenged by the slow rate of synthesis of batrachotoxin. The native habitat of poison dart frogs is the warm regions of Central and South America, in which the humidity is around 80 percent. Use The most common use of this toxin is by the Noanamá Chocó and Emberá Chocó of the Embera-Wounaan of western Colombia for poisoning blowgun darts for use in hunting. Poison darts are prepared by the Chocó by first impaling a frog on a piece of wood. By some accounts, the frog is then held over or roasted alive over a fire until it cries in pain. Bubbles of poison form as the frog's skin begins to blister. The dart tips are prepared by touching them to the toxin, or the toxin can be caught in a container and allowed to ferment. Poison darts made from either fresh or fermented batrachotoxin are enough to drop monkeys and birds in their tracks. Nerve paralysis is almost instantaneous. Other accounts say that a stick siurukida ("bamboo tooth") is put through the mouth of the frog and passed out through one of its hind legs. This causes the frog to perspire profusely on its back, which becomes covered with a white froth. The darts are dipped or rolled in the froth, preserving their lethal power for up to a year. See also Tetrodotoxin, a toxin that works in the opposite way of batrachotoxin Citations General and cited references Carboxylate esters Cyclohexenes Cyclopentenes Enones Ethers Ion channel toxins Neurotoxins Non-protein ion channel toxins Oxygen heterocycles Pyrroles Secondary alcohols Sodium channel openers Steroidal alkaloids Steroids Tertiary alcohols Vertebrate toxins