Poison frogs represent an interesting case of acquired toxicity and selection. The
majority of alkaloids found in the skins of these frogs are of dietary origin, arising
from arthropod forage, most commonly ants and mites. We have examined three collections
of D. auratus, a species introduced to Oahu, HI in the 1930 s. Collections from Oahu and Panama
indicate spatial and temporal changes as well as microsympatric individual variation
in frogs, correlated with arthropods in leaf litter. Pumiliotoxins (PTXs) and decahydroquinoline
(DHQ) dimers were observed along with hydroxylated metabolites, which this species
is known to produce. Hydroxylated PTXs were observed in frogs but not arthropod forage,
supporting frogs as the unique producer of these metabolites. Unsaturated precursors
of DHQ dimers were also observed, lending credence to the proposed Diels-Alder pathway
for their formation.
