RainForests

Rainforests are an area of tall, mostly evergreen trees and a high amount of rainfall. Rainforests are Earth's oldest living ecosystems, with some surviving in their present form for at least 70 million years. But rainforests are homes to some of the endangered species which are slowly dying because of human activity and deforestation. There is plenty of vegetation in the rainforest biome (well, of course, the rainforest is lush with trees from every corner and vegetation covering every bit of soil) which keeps the ecosystems going. Now we will address some of the endangered species in the rainforests and explain why they are endangered.

Poison Dart Frog

The poison dart frog is a colourful frog found in tropical rainforests. These frogs are known for their bright colors and the poisons they produce, which people in tribes once used on the tips of blow darts for hunting ( they got their blow darts and rubbed it onto the skin of the poison dart frog ). Despite their small size, some poison dart frogs carry enough poison to kill a person.

Credits: https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/amphibians/facts/poison-dart-frog

Etymology

The poison dart frog got its name from the poisons contained within their skin. That poison was used by local tribes in the rainforests to coat their blowgun darts for hunting, which is a useful way of hunting for them. They also got their name from the brightly coloured species in the group which sequester toxic skin, obtained through the insects they eat.

Variants

The poison dart frog comes in many different varieties of colours which are beautiful, but beware, the toxins on the frog is poisonous to both predators and humans! Now down below, there are the types of poison dart frogs and their descriptions.

This type of frog is called 'the golden poison frog' (scientific name, Phyllobates terribilis). Golden poison frogs have four long slender legs that end in four toes that are not webbed. The toes have tiny disks called toe tips. uA unique characteristic that distinguishes them from other poison dart frogs is a bony teeth-like plate in the upper jaw.

This type of frog is called 'the black legged poison frog' (scientific name, Phyllobates bicolour). These types of poison frogs are like the golden poison frog, four long slender legs which are not webbed, toe tips (which in males toe tips are larger than female's toe tips) but this one is special. The black legged poison frog is one of the most poisonous frogs. This frog is the second most lethal poison frog in all of the poison dart frogs (just before the golden poison frog).

This type of frog is called 'the blue poison frog' (scientific name, Dendrobates tinctorius). Blue poison dart frogs are bright blue. The limbs are royal blue and the belly is dark blue. There is an irregular pattern of small and large dark spots covering the head and back. The pattern of these spots is unique to each individual frog and can be used for identification, just like human fingerprints.

This type of frog is called 'the yellow banded poison frog', also known as 'the bumble bee poison frog' (scientific name, Dendrobates leucomelas). This frog doesn't have webbed feet, but it does have unique adhesive pads on its toes and fingertips that help it climb. Females lay anywhere from 100 to 1,000 eggs per year. These frogs need to eat at least every other day. They can die if they go 48 hours without food.

lehmanns poison frog

This frog is called 'Lehmann's poison frog '. These types of poison dart frog species are among one of the most rarest poison dart frog species. They are extremely hard to find and they are as poisonous as all the other poison dart frogs.

the lovely poison frog

The lovely poison dart frog, (Phyllobates lugubris), is a species of poison dart frog found in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama. The lovely poison dart frog is amongst the smallest and least-toxic of the Phyllobates genus and is one of the northernmost poison dart frogs.

The strawberry poison frog

The strawberry poison dart frog features unique traits in their eyes that enable them to differentiate between different colour variations of their species. Females rely on this ability, as they often select mates that are of the same color pattern.

Life cycle : the poison dart frog's lifespan is usally 10-15 years

Fun facts:

Did you know that once in an aquarium, there was a blue poison dart frog that lived up to 25 years old?

Status :

VU, EN, CR EN and EN

abBott's booby

The Abbott's booby also known as Papasula abotti is a rainforest endangered species. These animals are under threat and only have a population of 3000 breeding pairs left! You might think this is a lot of Abbott's boobies left, well... you're actually wrong. These animals are very endangered! Imagine only 3000 left in the WHOLE WORLD! Isn't that crazy? We have to save these beautiful birds.

etmetology

How did the Abbott's booby get its name? Well, the word booby is the Spanish slang term for 'bobo' which is stupid. It represents how "stupid" the Abbott's booby was when they tried to capture them.

diet

Abbott's booby's diets are very simple, just containing two animals, squid and fish. Though, there are a wide diversity of fish and squid, we'll list them here.

barracuda

The Barracuda also know as Syphraena, is a very fast fish. These fish have very sharp teeth and are attracted to shiny objects.

sailfishes

swordfishes are one of the fastest fishes in the sea! it has a weird appearance : that very long pointed nose ( is it a nose or a horn? )

Page updated

Report abuse