Oophaga histrionica

The Harlequin poison frog, common poison arrow frog, or red and black poison frog (Oophaga histrionica) is a frog.  It lives in Colombia.

This frog has smooth skin with bright colors. Most of them have black or brown skin with red, orange, or yellow spots. The male frog can be larger than the female frog.

This frog lives on the ground in rainforests. People have seen this frog between 300 and 730 meters above sea level. People have seen the frog in Parque Nacional Tatamá, but this is not a protected park.

The male frog and female frog call to each other and touch each other for hours before the female frog lays eggs.  After the eggs hatch, the female frog carries the tadpoles to bromeliad plants. She puts them in the water, where they grow. The female frog lays eggs that will not hatch for the tadpoles to eat. Sometimes a female frog will eat or kill the eggs from other female frogs.

Scientists believe this frog is in danger of dying out because it lives in a small place, because people cut down forests to dig good rocks out of the ground, and because people catch the frog to sell. Some people keep this frog as a pet because it is so beautiful.

References

Category:Frogs of South America