Killer Kermit! Brazil's Venomous Frog

Deep in the scrublands of the Brazilian Caatinga, lives a little frog known as the Greening's Frog (Corythomantis greening). But this is no ordinary little frog. The Greening's Frog's head is covered in deadly spines that inject its victims with toxins more potent than the venom of Brazilian pitviper snakes. 

This frog is one of two first known frogs to be venomous (The other venomous frog also calls Brazil its home). While many frogs and toads can be poisonous, venomous frogs deliver their toxins into the bloodstream of the predator as opposed to the predator ingesting poison. These venomous spines grow out of the frogs' skulls.

The Greening's Frog lives in holes on rocks and trees, with the head appearing to be very similar to the barks of trees, making the frog hard to find for predators. They close the holes up with their body, only leaving the venomous, spiny head exposed. This also helps maintain humidity inside the hole and reduce water loss from the body.

Nature is so amazing! We are still finding new species on this planet, and perhaps many undiscovered species have recently become extinct as we continue habitat destruction. This is one of the reasons we must continue our mission of educating as many people possible, so that we may continue to conserve our precious ecosystems!