Panamanian Golden Frog

Individuals have been collected for breeding in captivity in a bid to preserve the species. The alternative common name, Zetek's golden frog, and the epithet zeteki both commemorate the entomologist James Zetek.

Despite its common name, the Panamanian golden frog is a true toad, a member of the family Bufonidae. It was first described as a subspecies of Atelopus varius but is now classified as a separate species.

The Panamanian golden frog is a national symbol and is considered to be one of the most beautiful frogs in Panama. The skin color ranges from light yellow-green to bright gold, with some individuals exhibiting black spots on their backs and legs. Females are generally larger than males; females typically range from 45 to 63 mm (1.8 to 2.5 in) in length and 4 to 15 g (0.14 to 0.53 oz) in weight, with males between 35 and 48 millimeters (1.4 and 1.9 in) in length and 3 and 12 grams (0.11 and 0.42 oz) in weight.

Poison can keep the Panamanian golden frog safe, and its diet helps make the frog toxic even to the touch. In fact, the more different kinds of insects and invertebrates the frog eats, the more toxic its skin secretions become. All frogs in the golden frog's taxonomic family, Bufonidae, have toxic skin secretions for protection, but the Panamanian golden frog's secretions are the most toxic of the entire group.

The highly toxic skin of the frog has also been used for centuries by the native Americans of the Panamanian forests for arrow poison.

Males attract females with visual displays, instead of calling like most male frogs and toads do. These attractive displays include leg and head twitching, stamping the ground and hopping in place. Male frogs often wave their arms to communicate with females whom will wave back if interested.

The lifespan of the Panamanian golden frog is 12 years. This toad is unusual in that it communicates by a form of semaphore, waving at rivals and prospective mates, in addition to the sounds more usual among frogs. This adaptation is thought to have evolved in the Panamanian golden frog because of the noise of the fast-moving streams that formed its natural habitat.

The male tends to stay near the streams where breeding occurs, while in the nonbreeding season, the female retreats into the forests. The male uses a soft call to entice prospective mates, then grabs the female and hangs on when she crosses his path. If she is receptive, she will tolerate amplexus; if not, she will attempt to buck him off by arching her spine. Amplexus can last from a few days to a few months, with oviposition usually taking place in a shallow stream.

The development of the Panamanian golden frog can be divided into four stages: larva or tadpole, juvenile, subadult, and adult. During the larval stage, individuals emerge from their eggs after 2 to 10 days of development. They are entirely aquatic creatures at this stage and are found in waters with a temperature range from 20.4 to 21.3 °C and with depths of 5 to 35 cm.

After emerging, they mostly spend time resting in shallow pools below cascades. This behavior is similar to Darien stubfoot toad. Wherever water pools in a stream, they are likely to be found, as long as it is connected to moving channels. The tadpoles, however, do not venture into the moving channels. Clinging to surfaces by suction of their flattened bellies, the larvae can be characterized as gastromyzophorous. They are typically around 5.8 mm in length and 4.3 mm in width. Their snouts are rounded, as well as their tails. The longest caudal fins on their tails are about three-fifths the length of the tail. Their mouths are large and ventral, surrounded by labia, which form an unbroken oral disc about 3.6 mm wide. The posterior lip has no papillae, but other lips are lined with single rows of small, blunt papillae. They are colored from dark brown to black dorsally, with golden flecks on their bodies. They develop this black and gold coloration as melanin floods their dermal layers, giving the larvae protection from the sun. When metamorphosing, their golden flecks are replaced with dark green ones. The tadpoles feed on algae and spend 6 to 7 months developing and growing.

Toxic chemicals are present in toad skin and parotid glands. Drinking toads or toad cake can get you drunk. The majority of its venom's harmful substances are steroids that resemble digoxin. The majority of patients experience nausea, vomiting, and discomfort in the abdomen.

The remaining few specimens were taken into captivity and the location of filming was kept secret to protect them from potential poachers. Although captive populations seem to thrive well, reintroducing them to an area will not stop the threat of chytridiomycosis.

No current remedies prevent or control the disease in the wild, but efforts are being made. One attempt was made to protect a wide variety of frogs from the disease by using the bacterium Janthinobacterium lividium that produces a chemical against the infections; however, the skin of Panamanian golden frogs was unsuitable for the bacterium used.

Individuals have been collected for breeding in captivity in a bid to preserve the species.

Panamanian golden frogs inhabit the streams along the mountainous slopes of the Cordilleran cloud forests of west-central Panama. While the IUCN lists it as Critically Endangered, it may in fact have been extinct in the wild since 2007.

• Movement Pattern: Not a Migrant

• Individual Type: Solo

• Population Trend: Unspecific

• Population: 0-50?

• Locomotion: Amphibious

• Habitat: Montane grasslands and shrublands; temperate coniferous forests; temperate broadleaf and mixed forests; temperate deciduous forests, temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands; subtropical coniferous forests; subtropical moist broadleaf forests; subtropical dry broadleaf forests; subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands; salt plains; limestone forest; tropical coniferous forests; tropical moist broadleaf forests; tropical dry broadleaf forests; tropical grasslands; tropical savannas and shrublands; Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub; mushroom forests; deserts and xeric shrublands; badlands; flooded grasslands and savannas; swamp; riparian; wetland; mangrove forest; bamboo forest; air-breathing coral reefs; graveyard vale; warm river; pond; lush caverns

• Earth: 

  • Extant/Possibly Extinct (Resident): Panama

• Berbania/Hirawhassa: none

• Reinachos/Ityosel: none

• Thatrollwa: none

• Sawintir: none

• Agarathos: none

Feeding the frogs a slimeball or living insect causes them to enter tame.

The Panamanian golden frog is something of a national symbol, appearing on state lottery tickets and in local mythology. When the toad dies, it is thought to turn to gold and to bring good luck to those fortunate enough to see it. In 2010, the Panamanian government passed legislation recognizing August 14 as "National Golden Frog Day". The main celebration event is marked annually by a parade in the streets of El Valle de Anton, and a display of Panamanian golden frogs at the El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center in the El Nispero Zoo, El Valle.

See also: ??

• Spanish: Rana Dorada

• English: Cerro Campana Stubfoot Toad, Panamanian Golden Frog, Zetek's golden frog

• ???

• https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/panamanian-golden-frog

• https://www.tumblr.com/ognimdo2002/748205632766738432/panamanian-golden-frog-atelopus-zeteki-the?source=share

• https://www.deviantart.com/ognimdo2002/art/Panamanian-Golden-Frog-1055661442

• https://www.deviantart.com/ognimdo2002/art/1055661442