As much as you think it'll send you on a trip that will open doors you've never even seen before, the National Park Services has a simple warning: do NOT lick the toxic, psychedelic toads!
The NPS issued the warning for visitors to the Sonoran Desert, where you will often run into the Sonoran desert toad (Bufo alvarius), also known as "the Colorado river toad."
The NPS wrote in a post on Facebook that these toads "have prominent parotoid glands that secrete a potent toxin," and "can make you sick if you handle the frog or get the poison in your mouth."
Folks have described licking the toad's toxin as "psychedelic," and some have even smoked it to experience euphoria and hallucinations, according to NBC News.
The toxin is a defensive measure, and can be deadly to other animals, including dogs.
Robert Villa, the president of the Tucson Herpetological Society, says that so many humans taking the toads out of their habitats may put the toads at risk of population decline and extinction.
Bufotenin, one of the chemicals found in the toad's skin, is illegal to possess in California, but in neighboring Arizona, one can legally capture up to 10 toads with the proper license, according to the Oakland Zoo.
The zoo warned, however, that people might still be at risk of criminal charges if they intend to capture the toads to smoke their toxins.
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