Tiny dendrobatid (snout-vent length 17–24 mm; mass ≈ 1–2 g) with extreme colour polymorphism: the best-known morph shows a bright scarlet head + body contrasting with cobalt-blue limbs (“blue-jeans”), but populations range from solid orange to green-spotted yellow. Skin granular, loaded with lipophilic alkaloids that impart a slightly shiny texture. Iris dark bronze; tympanum distinct. Fingers unwebbed, toes basally webbed; adhesive discs enlarged for canopy climbing. Females 5–10 % larger than males. Tadpoles grey-brown, laterally compressed with transparent fins.
Females larger; males have swollen third finger pads and emit series of “buzz-chirp” advertisement calls.
Males 1.9 cm; females 2.2 cm SVL
1.5gr
4–6 yr wild; up to 12 yr captivit
4–6 yr wild; up to 12 yr captivit
4–6 yr wild; up to 12 yr captivit
≈ 10 mo (both sexes)
Extended rainy season (≈ February/March – October); peaks May–August
3–6 eggs clutch⁻¹; up to 4 clutches yr⁻¹ kept moist by the male
Tiny dendrobatid (snout-vent length 17–24 mm; mass ≈ 1–2 g) with extreme colour polymorphism: the best-known morph shows a bright scarlet head + body contrasting with cobalt-blue limbs (“blue-jeans”), but populations range from solid orange to green-spotted yellow. Skin granular, loaded with lipophilic alkaloids that impart a slightly shiny texture. Iris dark bronze; tympanum distinct. Fingers unwebbed, toes basally webbed; adhesive discs enlarged for canopy climbing. Females 5–10 % larger than males. Tadpoles grey-brown, laterally compressed with transparent fins.
Humid lowland and premontane rain forest (0–700 m) on the Caribbean slope and south-Pacific foothills; common in forest edges, cacao/shade-coffee plantations, and coastal thickets near bromeliad-rich trees
Diurnal leaf-litter insectivore specialised on mites & formicine ants—the dietary source of pumiliotoxins.
Social Structure & Behaviour
Territorial males (1–2 m²) call from low vegetation; engage in wrestling bouts.
Female inspects clutch daily; after hatching transports each tadpole on her dorsum to separate bromeliad axil.
Acoustic communication: single-pulse “buzz” (≈ 3.5 kHz) repeated every 6–8 s; visual flagging (arm-waving) in noisy streams.
Over 30 colour morphs documented in Costa Rica–Panamá, a textbook case of aposematic polymorphism.
Tadpoles are obligate oophages—they eat only unfertilised eggs supplied by the mother.
Skin alkaloids deter predatory spiders, but Parson’s leaf-nosed bat (Trachops cirrhosus) tolerates toxins.
Females choose nearest calling male, not the loudest—reducing predation risk during mate search.
Featured in 2019 Costa-Rican 2 000-colones bill celebrating biodiversity.
Robust requiem shark with fusiform body and high, slightly rounded first dorsal fin whose origin lies over (or just anterior to) the free rear tip of the pectorals. Snout long, broad and rounded; eyes circular with nictitating membrane. Dorsum uniform grey‑brown, ventrum white; no prominent flank markings.