The golden poison frog (Phyllobates terribilis), also known as the golden frog, golden poison arrow frog, or golden dart frog, is a poison dart frog endemic to the rainforest of Guyana. The optimal habitat of P. terribilis is the rainforest with high rain rates (5 m or more per year), altitudes between 100 and 200 m, temperatures of at least 26 °C, and relative humidity of 80–90%. In the wild, P. terribilis is a social animal, living in groups of up to six individuals; however, captive P. terribilis specimens can live in much larger groups. These frogs are often considered innocuous due to their small size and bright colours, but wild frogs are lethally toxic.
Its range is less than 5,000 square km. It is only known from primary forest. The eggs are laid on the ground; the males transport the tadpoles to permanent pools.
P. terribilisis the largest species of poison dart frog, and can reach a size of 55 mm as adults, with females typically being larger than males. Like all poison dart frogs, the adults are brightly colored, but they lack the dark spots present in many other dendrobatids. The frog’s colour pattern is aposematic (which is a warning pigmentation to warn predators of its toxicity). The frog has tiny adhesive disks on its toes, which aid climbing of plants. It also has a bone plate in the lower jaw, which gives it the appearance of having teeth, a distinctive feature not observed in the other species of Phyllobates. The frog is normally diurnal. P. terribilis occurs in three different color varieties or morphs.
The main natural sources of food of P. terribilis are the ants in the genera Brachymyrmex and Paratrechina, but many kinds of insects and other small invertebrates can be eaten, specifically termites and beetles, which can easily be found on the rainforest floor. This frog is considered the most voracious of the dendrobatids.
In captivity, the frog is fed with Drosophila fruit flies, cochineals, crickets (Gryllidae), the larvae of various insects, and other small, live, invertebrate foods. An adult frog can eat food items much larger in relation to its size than most other dendrobatids. Tadpoles feed on algae, mosquito larvae, and other edible material that may be present in their nursery. Unlike other Phyllobates spp., P. terribilis tadpoles are somewhat versatile feeders.
