Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I think there might be some urban legend stuff going on with FBT toxicity claims similar to the old story of mealworms eating their way out of an animal that consumed them. I have read here in the forums over and over again about how the "poison" builds up in the water and kills the toads. It's true that these amphibians are toxic, but the toxin is an irritant designed to encourage a predator to spit them out and therefore weak. A chili pepper does the same thing, but people aren't dying from eating too many of them. I don't think FBTs are deadly and I'm certain they have an immunity to their own toxin!!? Anyone have any comments on this?

That could be true because I have never heard of any FBT actually dying because of the build up of toxins in their tank.

I think what you are talking about might stem from a lack of understanding of filtration and the nitrogen cycle. Certainly ammonia is a toxin that is produced by any living animal, and can build up without proper filtration/water exchanges. Nonetheless, I think it would be careless not to calculate the possibility of toxin accumulation when discussing setups and mixing species.
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"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully."
Governor George W. Bush, Jr.

"Sometimes I think the surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us."
Calvin and Hobbes (Scientific Progress Goes 'Boink', 1991)

I dont have a fire belly toad, but I am looking forward to getting one later today, Just as a precausion, Your not saying that a FBT can kill a person are you?
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