"Poisonous Frogs in Containers" at Bogotá Airport

In a curious and questioning incident, authorities in Colombia seized 130 poisonous frogs that were being smuggled through Bogotá Airport on Monday, and arrested the woman carrying them. The Brazilian woman was transporting the colorful poison dart frogs (oophaga histrionica) in film containers while traveling to São Paulo with a stop in Panama. Bogotá's Environment Minister, Adriana Soto, stated in a video shared with the media that the woman "claimed the local community had given them to her as a gift." The poison dart frogs are toxic, measuring less than five centimeters in length, and inhabit wet forests along the Pacific coast between Ecuador and Colombia, as well as in other countries in Central and South America. Bogotá Police Chief Juan Carlos Arévalo said, "This endangered species is sought after in international markets," adding that private collectors could pay up to $1,000 each for them.