What would you do if you stumbled across a giant toad in the wild? Would you lean down, pick him up, give him a kiss, hoping that he turns into a Prince? Well, the National Park Service is warning people against kissing, or ugh, licking, the frogs.
Many of us didn’t even realize this was a major problem, but apparently, it’s enough of an issue to address it on social media. In a recent Facebook post, the NPS asked visitors to not place their tongues on Sonoran Desert Toads, also known as Colorado River Toads. “Hey there! Here is the ‘ribbiting’ late night content no one asked for. Yet here we are,” the agency wrote, sharing a photo of a Sonoran desert toad caught on infrared camera at Arizona’s Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.
“These toads have prominent parotoid glands that secrete a potent toxin,” the agency explained. “It can make you sick if you handle the frog or get the poison in your mouth. As we say with most things you come across in a national park, whether it be a banana slug, unfamiliar mushroom, or a large toad with glowing eyes in the dead of night, please refrain from licking. Thank you.”
So why would folks try to lick this toxic toad? Scientists at Johns Hopkins University conducted a study on the Sonoran Desert Toad. They found a unique (and potent) substance within the toad’s toxin, named 5-MeO-DSMT. This substance, according to the study, was demonstrated to improve depression and anxiety symptoms in some people. In fact, 80% of the 362 adults within the study reported a mood improvement lasting up to 90 minutes after using the toxin.
Some folks who learned of the Johns Hopkins’ study have decided to see if licking the Colorado River Toad might provide a psychedelic trip. The NPS reminded people that 5-MeO-DSMT is classified in the Controlled Substances Act as a Schedule I drug. As such, it is illegal in the United States. But beyond that, the substance can make you extremely sick, and in some rare cases, even result in death.
So if you come upon these extremely large amphibians (this particular species is one of the largest toads in North America, measuring nearly 7 inches long), please just take a photo and walk on.
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Photo Credit: Vladimir Wrangel / Shutterstock.com