They are still used in South America, some part of Africa, and in Southeast Asia. The term curare is from a South American aboriginal word. The plants upon which the arrow poisons are based, the method of preparation and the utilization of the materials differ greatly from culture to culture. It should be noted, however, that calabash and tube curares are terms based on the type of containers used and do not say anything about what plants are used to make the arrow poisons. Generally, the correlations noted above hold.
Calabashes are small gourds and tube means a section of bamboo.
Arrow poisons are also stored in small pottery containers by people of some cultures. Cissampelos species The preparation of these mixtures is usually complicated and many plant materials are used in addition to the major active ones. Some of these have been shown to have synergistic effects. Once prepared, the dose is often standardized by shooting small birds or animals of particular species and noting the amount necessary to kill them. Death usually occurs by asphyxiation.