Dangerous High from Toad Slime

Can you imagine licking a frog? Pretty disgusting, I think. However, with the right toad, it is said to be possible to get LSD-like highs. However, the risk of overdose is very high, and it can even result in cardiac arrest or death. And it is an act of animal cruelty.

Toads and some other amphibians, such as the fire salamander, produce bufotoxins, a family of toxic steroid lactones or substituted tryptamines, which they secrete from glands on their skin. These toxins serve to deter predators and also prevent colonization by bacteria or fungi. Bufotoxins are dangerous for humans, and exposure—whether by ingestion, inhalation, or mucosal contact—carries significant risk of severe poisoning or death.

Colorado and cane toads from the USA and Australia, respectively, in addition secrete a mixture of hallucinogens, including bufotenine and/or 5-methoxymonomethyltryptamine (not in the case of Bufo marinus). These are chemically similar to LSD.

Therefore, in Australia, where this practice originated, the skin of the cane toad (Bufo marinus) is dried and either brewed into a psychoactive decoction or smoked. In the USA, the Colorado River toad (Bufo alvarius) is used. Its toxin appears as a whitish secretion, primarily around the neck, from where it can be licked directly or smoked in dried form. In other countries where these toads are not native, including Germany, the secretion is now also consumed, and the toads are even traded legally, since the possession and use of these animals are not regulated under narcotics law.

Professor Holger Barth, Head of the Institute for Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Naturopathy at Ulm University Hospital, Germany, describes that about 30 minutes after ingesting toad secretion, sensations and symptoms could occur that closely resemble the psychological and physical effects of an LSD trip: euphoria, disinhibition, perception of colors and light effects, but also confusion, dizziness, headache, nausea, and vomiting.

However, as with all psychoactive substances derived from animals, plants, or fungi, the concentrations of toxins and hallucinogenic compounds in toad secretions are unpredictable. This can lead to poisoning with potentially life-threatening complications, such as severe blood pressure spikes, heart rhythm disturbances, and even cardiac arrest. The use of animal-derived hallucinogens is, therefore, highly dangerous, and consumption is strongly discouraged.