Kecil Tapi Ia Mampu Membunuh - Katak Beracun

Jangan tertipu dengan saiz katak beracun ini yang amat kecil sebesar saiz hujung pensil, racunnya amat berbisa seumpama 200 kali saiz dadah morphine. Katak ini hanya dapat ditemui di kawasan hutan liar di Equador, Amerika Selatan.

Ia merupakan spesis yang hampir pupus dari mukabumi dan sekarang ianya sedang giat dibiakkan semula di Blue Reef Aquarium di Portsmouth, Hampshire.

Para saintis sedang menkaji bagaimana menggunakan bahan yang terdapat pada kulit katak itu bagi mencipta ubat bius atau ubat penahan sakit yang amat mujarab.

Ia mampu menahan rasa sakit sebanyak 200 kali lebih berkesan dari morphine tanpa ada kesan sampingan yang ketara dan yang lebih menarik lagi ialah ia tidak mendatangkan ketagihan.

Baca laporan di bawah untuk maklumat lebih lanjut;

Warning: This baby frog sitting on a pencil is so poisonous it could make YOU croak

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Last updated at 10:41 AM on 30th April 2010

He is less than a centimetre long and is gripping for all its worth to the tip of a pencil. But don't be fooled by the size of this baby 'poison dart' frog, its skin is 200 times more toxic than morphine.

The frogs, among the most poisonous amphibians on the planet, are found only in the wild on the western slopes of the Andes in Ecuador, South America. 

But now dozens of the rare species have been bred at the Blue Reef Aquarium in Portsmouth, Hampshire.

When adult they turn bright red with three usually greenish fluorescent stripes, but grow to only a centimetre in length.

Aquarium spokeswoman Jenna MacFarlane said: 'These beautiful frogs are under increasing threat in the wild due to loss of habitat and pollution and we are delighted to have been able to breed them successfully here.

'It's imperative we are able to mimic exactly their wild environment in order for the species to thrive in captivity and it's a real achievement they are breeding so successfully.

'They've passed the critical stage of development from tadpoles into froglets and they now look like perfect miniature replicas of their parents.'

Dwarfed by a ten pence piece, the frog's skin has 200 times more toxin than morphine

The World Conservation Union considers the phantasmal poison frog to be endangered, which means that it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.

The species is now thought to survive in only seven sites on mountains in parts of Ecuador.

Ms McFarlane said: 'Despite their deadly status, it is hoped that the phantasmal poison frog could one day help save lives.

'Scientists have discovered that an extract from the skin of the phantasmal poison frog Epipedrobates tricolor can block pain 200 times more effectively than morphine, and without addiction and other serious side effects.'