- I'm Coyote Peterson.
And that right there, that's a poison frog.
Oh boy.
(intense music)
(animal growls)
Living inside of each and every one of us
is a call to adventure.
Follow that call to Costa Rica,
and it will likely lead you on a trail to the Osa Peninsula,
where you are certain to make discoveries
that will never be forgotten.
(humming nervously)
Is there something on my face?
Central America is one of the
most biologically diverse locations on the planet,
and if you know where to look,
there's a chance you will encounter
its most elusive amphibian species.
A tiny, yet toxic creature that has always
lived at the top of my animal wish list.
However, finding one would not be simple,
and this adventure would require the team and I
to journey deep into the heart of the rainforest.
Ugh.
One thing that you don't realize
until you're in the Costa Rican rainforest,
is just how sweltering it really is.
Now, we've scaled down the side of this ravine,
and made it to a creek bed,
the perfect place to search for amphibians.
What I'm after are poison frogs.
Let's head up this way and see what we can find.
Getting into poison frog territory is only half the battle.
The rainforest poses many challenges.
But none more paralyzing for a camera team
than a massive rain storm.
Well, I guess that's why they call it a rainforest.
It's really raining now.
For nearly two hours, we were forced to
keep the cameras in protective bags,
while our bodies soaked up the deluge of torrential rain.
And while rain is bad for cameras,
it's absolutely perfect
for bringing amphibians out of their hiding spots.
Whoo!
(frog croaking)
- [Camera Man] Did you hear some?
- Yeah.
(frog croaking)
We got one right in here, right in here.
I see him, I see him.
Come up slow.
Yes.
Right there.
He's right there on the edge of that leaf.
You see him?
- [Camera Man] Uh huh. - [ Coyote] Red and teal.
- [Camera Man] Yep, got it. - That's it.
Let's see if I can just get him to
hop up onto my hand.
There we go, got him.
Ah, awesome.
Alright, now that we finally got one,
let's get him out into the better light,
and get him up close to the cameras.
Whoo!
Oh, how cool is this?
Okay.
Take off my pack here.
Finally, we have found a poison frog.
Get ready.
This is the granulated variety.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, come here little guy.
I'm gonna try to just get him
to balance on my hand there for a second so you can see him.
Look how adorable that little amphibian is.
Alright, I'm gonna get him under better control.
So that we can keep him here for this scene.
Come here, little guy.
Gently hold on to his back legs.
- [Camera Man] Man, that's a awesome frog shot.
- That is a cool frog right there.
I'm pretty safe right now.
I'm sure you're all watching this,
thinking to yourselves, "Oh boy Coyote,
"here you go again, handling another dangerous animal."
Trust me, I'm in no danger as long as
I don't lick or eat this little tiny frog.
This has to be the most brightly-colored frog
I think I've ever come across.
Being from Ohio, I'm used to
catching green frogs and bullfrogs.
They're brown and green.
And you look at this environment, the rainforest,
and you think to yourself, "How does this frog
"possibly camouflage itself?"
Well it doesn't.
It's actually doing exactly the opposite.
This bright coloration is called aposematic coloration.
It's actually a defense against predators,
because it warns them, "If you eat me, I'm extremely toxic."
Now this specific species, the granulated poison frog,
is not quite as toxic as some others.
There are some species in South America
that are so potent, I could die within a matter of hours.
Now, because this is an amphibian,
it absorbs a lot of its moisture through its skin.
So I'm constantly putting water on my hand from this creek,
and dribbling it onto the frog
to keep his skin wet, and my fingers wet.
My fingers are actually also capable
of extracting some of the moisture from this frog's body.
Most important thing is to make sure I'm handling it gently,
and keeping this amphibian moist.
Now one really interesting feature about poison frogs,
that separates them from many other frog species,
is that they do not have webbing in between their toes.
If you can see there, almost looks like
the little toes of a gecko.
And, I don't know if we'll be able to see it
with a macro shot, but they do have little sticky pads
right on the tips of their fingers,
which allow them to easily climb through the environment
on leaves, up and down logs, it allows them to
hunt through the forest for their food.
Now what they're primarily feeding on
is little ants, mites, and other invertebrates
that have high concentrations of alkaloids.
These alkaloids, once they're ingested
into the frog's system, allow them
to produce the toxins that make them poisonous.
That's a pretty cool feature.
Basically, the food that he's taking in
is turning him into this super power toxic amphibian.
(frog croaking) Male poison frogs
are incredibly territorial.
And our wildlife biologist, Mario,
managed to find himself in the right place,
at the right time, to film an epic battle.
(dramatic music)
(frogs croaking)
This was a true clash of tiny giants,
as the frogs went head-to-head
with spin moves and body slams.
This defensive behavior is rarely seen,
and only a few have ever captured it on camera.
(frogs croaking)
The rivalry was intense, but only lasted for a brief moment,
as the challenger was pinned belly-up,
and finally driven off.
With victory claimed, the king of this territory
sat and croaked proudly upon his leafy throne.
Now I would never recommend that you go out
and actually pick up one of these poison frogs.
Now this species is not potent enough to kill a human,
but if you had a cut on your finger,
and some of that toxin gets into your system,
it will give you a nauseous stomach,
and you'll probably have to lay down for a couple hours.
What a cool experience, getting to handle a beautiful,
yet toxic amphibian, here in the Costa Rican rainforest.
I'm Coyote Peterson, be brave, stay wild.
We'll see you on the next adventure.
Every time we film an episode of Breaking Trail,
we are faced with unique challenges.
And between the unforgiving terrain,
an onslaught of inclement weather,
this episode specifically was one of
the most difficult we have ever produced.
Seems crazy that such a small creature
like the poison frog, would pose such a challenge.
But in the end, this was one adventurous episode,
that was totally worth the effort.
If you enjoyed this encounter,
make sure to go back and watch,
as we get the cameras up close with some
of the planet's most fascinating animals.
And don't forget, subscribe and click the notification bell,
so you can enjoy me and the crew on our next wild adventure.
(animal growls)
(animal howls)