POISON 37 



It is well known to all who have handled freshly-caught 

 newts, and certain toads, especially BombvHator , that their secre- 

 tion acts as a sternutatory, and causes irritation of the nose and 

 eyes, the effects produced on us by BomMnator being comparable 

 to the early stages of a cold in the head. Many collectors of 

 Batrachians liave learned, to their discomfiture, how the intro- 

 duction of examples of certain species into the bag containing the 

 sport of their excursion may cause the death of the other 

 prisoners ; for although the poison has no effect on the skin of 

 individuals of the same species, different species, however closely 

 allied, may poison each other by mere contact. But when 

 inoculated the poison acts even on the same individual. 



Miss Ormerod, to personally test the effect, pressed part of the 

 back and tail of a live Crested Newt between the teeth. " The 

 first effect was a bitter astringent feeling in the mouth, with 

 irritation of the upper part of the throat, numbing of thf teeth 

 more immediately holding the animal, and in about a minute 

 from the first touch of the newt a strong flow of saliva. This 

 was accompanied by much foam and violent spasmodic action, 

 approaching convulsions, but entirely confined to the mouth 

 itself. The experiment was immediately followed by headache 

 lasting for some hours, general discomfort of the system, and half 

 an hour after by slight shivering fits." 



Numerous experiments have shown that the poison of toads, 

 salamanders, and newts is capable, when injected, of killing 

 mammals, birds, reptiles, and even fishes, provided, of course, that 

 the dose be proportionate to the size of the animal. Small 

 birds and lizards succumb as a rule in a few minutes ; guinea- 

 pigs, rabbits, and dogs in less than an hour. 



This poison of Amphibia is not septic, but acts upon the 

 heart and the central nervous system. That of the common 

 toad has been compared, in its effects, to that of Digitalis and 

 ErytliropUaeum. Some authorities hold that the poison is an 

 acid, others regard it as an alkaloid. 



Phisalix^ has come to the conclusion that toads and sala- 

 manders are possessed of two kinds of glands, different both 

 anatomically and physiologically. These are, first the mucous 

 glands, spread over the greater part of the body, with an alkaloid 

 secretion, which acts as a narcotic ; secondly, specific glands, as 



1 C. M. Ac. .S'ct. oix. 1889, pp. 40,5, 482. 



