{{Short description|Species of amphibian}} {{Speciesbox | name = Colorado River toad | image = 2009-03-13Bufo alvarius067.jpg | image2 = TOAD, SONORAN DESERT (Bufo alvarius) (8-6-13) 78 circulo montana, patagonia lake ranch estates, scc, az -01 (9466158294).jpg | status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name=IUCN>{{cite iucn |author=Geoffrey Hammerson, Georgina Santos-Barrera. |year=2004 |title=''Incilius alvarius'' |volume=2004 |article-number=e.T54567A11152901 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T54567A11152901.en |access-date=20 October 2021}}</ref> | status2 = G5 | status2_system = TNC | status2_ref = <ref>{{cite web |title=NatureServe Explorer 2.0 |url=https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.104462/Incilius_alvarius |website=explorer.natureserve.org |access-date=6 May 2022}}</ref> | genus = Incilius | species = alvarius | authority = (Girard, 1859) | synonyms = {{species list | Bufo alvarius | Girard ''in'' Baird, 1859 | Phrynoidis alvarius | – Cope, 1862 | Cranopsis alvaria | – Frost et al., 2006 | Ollotis alvaria | – Frost et al., 2006 }} | synonyms_ref = <ref name=Frost/> | range_map = Bufo alvarius distribution.svg | range_map_caption = }}

The '''Colorado River toad''' ('''''Incilius alvarius'''''), (previously ''Bufo alvarius'') also known as the '''Sonoran Desert toad''', is a toad species found in northwestern Mexico and the southwestern United States. It is well known for its ability to exude toxins from glands within its skin that have psychoactive properties.

The toad's scientific name used to be ''Bufo alvarius'', the name for which the toad is generally colloquially still known as. In the early 2000s, the increasingly important role of molecular genetic techniques in taxonomy and their ability to examine phylogenetic relationships allowed scientists to discover numerous distinct genera within the old Bufo group.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Smith |first1=Hobart |title=DILEMMA OF NAME-RECOGNITION: WHY AND WHEN TO USE NEW COMBINATIONS OF SCIENTIFIC NAMES |url=https://www.herpconbio.org/volume_1/issue_1/Smith_Chiszar_2006.pdf |website=1Department of EE Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309-0334, USA, Department of Psychology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309-0345, USA |access-date=2026-03-07}}</ref>

The Colorado River toad's name was subsequently changed to '''''Incilius alvarius'''''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hammerson |first1=G |title=Incilius alvarius Sonoran Desert Toad |url=https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.104462/Incilius_alvarius |website=NatureServe Explorer |access-date=2026-03-07}}</ref>

==Description== The Colorado River toad can grow to about {{convert|7.5|in|order=flip}} long and is the largest toad in the United States apart from the non-native cane toad (''Rhinella marina''). It has a smooth, leathery skin and is olive green or mottled brown in color. Just behind the large golden eye with a horizontal pupil is a bulging kidney-shaped parotoid gland. Below this is a large circular pale green area which is the tympanum or ear drum. By the corner of the mouth there is a white wart and there are white glands on the legs. All these glands produce toxic secretions. Its call is described as, "a weak, low-pitched toot, lasting less than a second."<ref>National Audubon Society: Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians</ref>

Dogs (''Canis familiaris'') that have attacked toads have suffered paralysis or even death. Raccoons (''Procyon lotor)'' have learned to pull a toad away from a pond by the back leg, turn it on its back and start feeding on its belly, a strategy that keeps the raccoon well away from the poison glands.<ref name=Badger>{{cite book |title=Frogs |last=Badger |first=David|author2=Netherton, John |year=1995 |publisher=Swan Hill Press |location=Shrewsbury, England |isbn=1-85310-740-9 |pages=93–94}}</ref> Unlike other vertebrates, this amphibian obtains water mostly by osmotic absorption across its abdomen. Toads in the family Bufonidae have a region of skin known as "the seat patch", which extends from mid abdomen to the hind legs and is specialized for rapid rehydration. Most of the rehydration is done through absorption of water from small pools or wet objects.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Localization of water channels in the skin of two species of desert toads, ''Anaxyrus (Bufo) punctatus'' and ''Incilius (Bufo) alvarius'' |journal=Zoological Science |volume=28 |issue=9 |pages=664–670 |doi=10.2108/zsj.28.664 |s2cid=207287044 |url=http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.2108/zsj.28.664 |last1=Shibata|first1=Yuki|last2=Takeuchi|first2=Hiro-aki|last3=Hasegawa|first3=Takahiro|last4=Suzuki|first4=Masakazu|last5=Tanaka|first5=Shigeyasu|last6=Hillyard|first6=Stanley D.|last7=Nagai|first7=Takatoshi |year=2011 |pmid=21882955|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat== thumb|upright|Range of ''Incilius alvarius'' in the United States In the United States, the Colorado River toad is found in the lower Colorado River and the Gila River catchment areas, in extreme southwestern New Mexico and much of southern Arizona. It is considered possibly extirpated from California.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sonoran Desert Toad - Incilius alvarius |url=http://www.californiaherps.com/frogs/pages/i.alvarius.html |website=www.californiaherps.com |access-date=6 May 2022}}</ref> In Mexico, the toad is found in the states of Sonora, Sinaloa, and Chihuahua. It lives in both desert and semi-arid areas throughout its range. It is semiaquatic and is often found in streams, near springs, in canals and drainage ditches, and under water troughs.<ref name=Badger/> The Colorado River toad is known to breed in artificial water bodies (e.g., flood control impoundments, reservoirs) and as a result, the distributions and breeding habitats of these species may have been recently altered in south-central Arizona.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Gergus |first1=Erik W. A. |last2=Malmos |first2=Keith B. |last3=Sullivan |first3=Brian K. |date=1999 |title=Natural hybridization among distantly related toads (''Bufo alvarius'', ''Bufo cognatus'', ''Bufo woodhousii'') in Central Arizona |journal=Copeia |volume=1999 |issue=2 |pages=281–286 |jstor=1447473 |doi=10.2307/1447473}}</ref> It often makes its home in rodent burrows and is nocturnal.

==Biology== The Colorado River toad is sympatric with the spadefoot toad (''Scaphiopus'' spp.), Great Plains toad (''Anaxyrus cognatus''), red-spotted toad (''Anaxyrus punctatus''), and Woodhouse's toad (''Anaxyrus woodhousei''). Like many other toads, they are active foragers and feed on invertebrates, lizards, small mammals, and amphibians. The most active season for toads is May–September, due to greater rainfalls (needed for breeding purposes). The age of ''I. alvarius'' individuals in a population at Adobe Dam in Maricopa County, Arizona, ranged from 2 to 4 years; other species of toad have a lifespan of 4 to 5 years.<ref>{{cite book |title=Species Accounts for the Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program |chapter=COLORADO RIVER TOAD (''Bufo alvarius'') |date=September 2008 |pages=330–342 |publisher=Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program |location=Boulder City, Nevada |url=https://www.lcrmscp.gov/reports/2008/c03_species_accounts_2008.pdf}}</ref> The taxonomic affinities of ''I. alvarius'' remain unclear, but immunologically, it is similarly close to the ''boreas'' and ''valliceps'' groups.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Sullivan |first1=Brian K. |last2=Malmos |first2=Keith B. |last3=Movin |first3=T. |date=1994 |title=Call variation in the Colorado River Toad (''Bufo alvarius''): behavioral and phylogenetic implications |jstor=3893021 |journal=Herpetologica |volume=50 |issue=2 |pages=146–156 |doi=10.1007/BF00690963 |pmid=3893021|s2cid=22694946 }}</ref>

==Breeding== The breeding season starts in July, when the rainy season begins, and can last up to August. Normally, 1–3 days after the rain is when toads begin to lay eggs in ponds, slow-moving streams, temporary pools or man-made structures that hold water. Eggs are 1.6&nbsp;mm in diameter, 5–7&nbsp;mm apart, and encased in a long single tube of jelly with a loose but distinct outline. The female toad can lay up to 8,000 eggs.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Behler|first1=J.L|title=The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians|year=1979|publisher=Knopf; 1 edition (November 12, 1979)|isbn=0-394-50824-6|pages=[https://archive.org/details/audubonsocietyfi00behl/page/743 743]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/audubonsocietyfi00behl/page/743}}</ref>

==Psychotropic uses== The toad's primary defense system are glands that produce a poison that may be potent enough to kill a grown dog.<ref name="desertmuseum">{{cite book |editor1=Phillips, Steven J. |editor2=Wentworth Comus, Patricia |title = A Natural History of the Sonoran Desert |url=https://archive.org/details/naturalhistoryof00ariz |url-access=registration |publisher = University of California Press |year = 2000 |isbn = 0-520-21980-5 |page = [https://archive.org/details/naturalhistoryof00ariz/page/537 537] }}</ref> <ref name="ISBN 0789026422">{{cite book | vauthors = Repke DB, Torres CM |title=Anadenanthera: visionary plant of ancient South America |publisher=Haworth Herbal Press |location=New York |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-7890-2642-2}}</ref>These parotoid glands also produce 5-methoxy-''N'',''N''-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT)<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Erspamer |first1 = V. |last2 = Vitali |first2 = T. |last3 = Roseghini |first3 = M. |last4 = Cei |first4 = J.M. |date = July 1967 |title = 5-Methoxy- and 5-Hydroxyindoles in the skin of ''Bufo alvarius'' |url =http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/bitstream/handle/10915/88423/Documento_completo.pdf?sequence=1 |journal = Biochemical Pharmacology |volume = 16 |issue = 7 |pages = 1149–1164 |doi = 10.1016/0006-2952(67)90147-5 |pmid = 6053590 }}</ref> and bufotenin (which is named after the ''Bufo'' genus of toads); both of these chemicals belong to the family of hallucinogenic tryptamines. thumb|Sapo en Sonora

Bufotenin is a chemical constituent in the secretions and eggs of several species of toads belonging to the genus ''Bufo'', but the Colorado River toad (''Incilius alvarius'') is the only toad species in which bufotenin is present in large enough quantities for a psychoactive effect. Extracts of toad secretion, containing bufotenin and other bioactive compounds, have been used in some traditional medicines such as ''ch'an su'' (probably derived from ''Bufo gargarizans''), which has been used medicinally for centuries in China,<ref name="davis" /> as an herbal remedy often illegally imported to the USA that can be prepared as a tea.<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Lethal Ingestion of Chinese Tea Containing Ch' an Su | year=1996 | pmc=1303306 | last1=Ko | first1=R. J. | last2=Greenwald | first2=M. S. | last3=Loscutoff | first3=S. M. | last4=Au | first4=A. M. | last5=Appel | first5=B. R. | last6=Kreutzer | first6=R. A. | last7=Haddon | first7=W. F. | last8=Jackson | first8=T. Y. | last9=Boo | first9=F. O. | last10=Presicek | first10=G. | journal=The Western Journal of Medicine | volume=164 | issue=1 | pages=71–75 | pmid=8779214 }}</ref>

The toad was "recurrently depicted in Mesoamerican art",<ref>{{cite journal |author=Kennedy AB |title=Ecce Bufo: The Toad in Nature and in Olmec Iconography |journal=Current Anthropology |volume=23 |pages=273–90 |year=1982 |doi=10.1086/202831 |issue=3 |s2cid=143698915 }}</ref> which some authors have interpreted as indicating that the effects of ingesting ''Bufo'' secretions have been known in Mesoamerica for many years; however, others doubt that this art provides sufficient ethnohistorical evidence to support the claim.<ref name=davis>{{cite journal |vauthors=Davis W, Weil A |year=1992 |title=Identity of a New World Psychoactive Toad |journal=Ancient Mesoamerica |volume=3 |pages=51–9 |doi=10.1017/s0956536100002297|s2cid=162875250 }}</ref>

In addition to bufotenin, ''Bufo'' secretions also contain digoxin-like cardiac glycosides, and ingestion of the poison can be fatal. Ingestion of ''Bufo'' toad toxins and eggs by humans has resulted in several reported cases of poisoning,<ref name=hitt>{{cite journal |doi=10.1056/NEJM198606053142320 |vauthors=Hitt M, Ettinger DD |year=1986 |title=Toad toxicity |journal=N Engl J Med |volume=314 |issue=23 |pages=1517–8 |pmid=3702971}}</ref><ref name=ragonesi>{{cite journal |author=Ragonesi DL |year=1990 |title=The boy who was all hopped up |journal=Contemporary Pediatrics |volume=7 |pages=91–4}}</ref><ref name=brubacher>{{cite journal |vauthors=Brubacher JR, Ravikumar PR, Bania T, Heller MB, Hoffman RS |year=1996 |title=Treatment of toad venom poisoning with digoxin-specific Fab fragments |journal=Chest |volume=110 |issue=5 |pages=1282–8 |doi=10.1378/chest.110.5.1282 |pmid=8915235}}</ref> some of which resulted in death.<ref name=brubacher/><ref name=godwa>{{cite journal |vauthors=Gowda RM, Cohen RA, Khan IA |year=2003 |title=Toad venom poisoning: resemblance to digoxin toxicity and therapeutic implications |journal=Heart |volume=89 |issue=4 |pages=14e–14 |doi=10.1136/heart.89.4.e14 |pmid=12639891 |pmc=1769273}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Lever, Christopher |title=The Cane Toad: The History and Ecology of a Successful Colonist |publisher=Westbury Academic & Scientific Publishing |year=2001 |isbn=978-1-84103-006-7 }}</ref> The first reported death associated with the ingestion of ch'an su was that of a young woman who consumed it as a prescribed (by a Chinese herbalist) Chinese herbal remedy mixed into a tea (an approximately 100ml bowl). Immediately upon ingesting the ch'an tea, the woman experienced vomiting, difficulty breathing, and gastric tenderness, which spurred her husband to take her to the emergency room, where she died two and a half hours after drinking the tea.<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Lethal Ingestion of Chinese Herbal Tea Containing Ch'an Su | year=1996 | pmc=1303306 | last1=Ko | first1=R. J. | last2=Greenwald | first2=M. S. | last3=Loscutoff | first3=S. M. | last4=Au | first4=A. M. | last5=Appel | first5=B. R. | last6=Kreutzer | first6=R. A. | last7=Haddon | first7=W. F. | last8=Jackson | first8=T. Y. | last9=Boo | first9=F. O. | last10=Presicek | first10=G. | journal=The Western Journal of Medicine | volume=164 | issue=1 | pages=71–75 | pmid=8779214 }}</ref>

Contemporary reports indicate that bufotenin-containing toad toxins have been used as a street drug; that is, as a supposed aphrodisiac,<ref>Rodrigues, R.J. [http://www.ehealthstrategies.com/files/aphrodisia.pdf Aphrodisiacs through the Ages: The Discrepancy Between Lovers' Aspirations and Their Desires]. ehealthstrategies.com </ref> ingested orally in the form of ''ch'an su'',<ref name=brubacher/> and as a psychedelic, by smoking or orally ingesting ''Bufo'' toad secretion or dried ''Bufo'' skins. The use of ''chan'su'' and ''love stone'' (a related toad toxin preparation used as an aphrodisiac in the West Indies) has resulted in several cases of poisoning and at least one death.<ref name=brubacher/><ref name=cdc>{{cite journal |author=Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) |year=1995 |title=Deaths associated with a purported aphrodisiac—New York City, February 1993 – May 1995 |journal=MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep |volume=44 |issue=46 |pages=853–5, 861 |pmid=7476839 |url=https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00039633.htm}}</ref> The practice of orally ingesting toad secretions has been referred to in popular culture and in the scientific literature as "toad licking" and has drawn media attention.<ref>[https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6376594 The Dog Who Loved to Suck on Toads.] ''NPR.'' Accessed on May 6, 2007.</ref>

When vaporized or smoked, a single deep inhalation of the venom produces strong psychoactive effects within 15 seconds, which can last for up to 20 minutes.<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Weil |first1 = Andrew T. |last2=Davis |first2=Wade |title=Bufo alvarius: a potent hallucinogen of animal origin. |journal=Journal of Ethnopharmacology |date=January 1994 |volume=41 |issue=1–2 |pages=1–8 |doi=10.1016/0378-8741(94)90051-5 |pmid=8170151}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Ermakova AO, Dunbar F, Rucker J, Johnson MW | title = A narrative synthesis of research with 5-MeO-DMT | journal = J Psychopharmacol | volume = 36 | issue = 3 | pages = 273–294 | date = March 2022 | pmid = 34666554 | doi = 10.1177/02698811211050543 | pmc = 8902691 }}</ref> After inhalation, the user usually experiences a warm sensation, euphoria, and strong visual and auditory hallucinations, due to 5-MeO-DMT's high affinity for the 5-HT<sub>2</sub> and 5-HT<sub>1A</sub> serotonin receptor subtypes.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Kirsten |last1=Krebs-Thomson |first2=ErbertM. |last2=Ruiz |first3=Virginia |last3=Masten |first4=Mahalah |last4=Buell |title=The roles of 5-HT<sub>1A</sub> and 5-HT<sub>2</sub> receptors in the effects of 5-MeO-DMT on locomotor activity and prepulse inhibition in rats |journal=Psychopharmacology |date=December 2006 |pages=319–329 |volume=189 |issue=3 |doi=10.1007/s00213-006-0566-1 |pmid=17013638 |first5=MarkA. |last5=Geyer |s2cid=23396616}}</ref>

The 21st century phenomenon of smoking Colorado River toad venom can be traced to the publishing of the pamphlet ''Bufo Alvarius: the Psychedelic Toad of the Sonoran Desert'' in 1983, written under the pseudonym 'Albert Most.' The pamphlet describes how to extract and smoke the venom of the Colorado River toad, containing serotonergic psychedelic 5-MeO-DMT, and its publication sparked the present-day recreational use.

The author's true identity remained unknown until 2020, when journalist Hamilton Morris revealed that it was a man named Ken Nelson, from Denton, Texas. He interviewed Ken in S03 E01 of his show ''Hamilton's Pharmacopeia'', ''Synthetic Toad Venom Machine'', in December 2020.

Morris initially thought he had discovered the author in 2017. Writer Alfred Savinelli fraudulently claimed to be the author and was interviewed for his season 2 premiere, “''The Psychedelic Toad''”. After the episode's airing, the real Albert Most, Ken Nelson, contacted Hamilton with verifiable proof that he wrote the pamphlet..<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rodrigue |first1=Daniel |title=The Story Behind a 1984 Hallucinogenic Pamphlet From Denton Is Just as Trippy as Its Subject |url=https://www.dallasobserver.com/arts-culture/a-vice-show-led-to-identifying-the-denton-creators-of-a-guide-to-hallucinogenic-toad-venom-12005921/ |website=The Dallas Observer |access-date=2026-03-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Morris |first1=Hamilton |title=The Toad Venom Pamphlet That Changed Psychedelia Forever {{!}} HAMILTON'S PHARMACOPEIA |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WMA1_PdgRQ |website=YouTube |access-date=2026-03-07}}</ref>

Among the notable people who have spoken publicly about their experiences with the psychoactive agents in the poison are boxer Mike Tyson,<ref name="Gastelum2021">{{cite magazine |last1=Gastelum |first1=Andrew |title=Mike Tyson Says He 'Died' From Smoking Psychedelic Toad Venom |url=https://www.si.com/boxing/2021/11/17/mike-tyson-says-he-died-smoking-psychedelic-toad-venom |access-date=14 August 2022 |magazine=Sports Illustrated |date=17 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211117173356/https://www.si.com/boxing/2021/11/17/mike-tyson-says-he-died-smoking-psychedelic-toad-venom |archive-date=17 November 2021}}</ref> comedian Chelsea Handler,<ref name="Schmidt2019">{{cite news |last1=Schmidt |first1=Ingrid |title=Chelsea Handler Talks Cannabis Brand, Smoking Toad Venom, Marijuana Facials and More |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/chelsea-talks-cannabis-brand-smoking-toad-venom-marijuana-facials-more-at-upscale-vape-pen-launch-1184740/ |access-date=14 August 2022 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=10 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211118033853/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/chelsea-talks-cannabis-brand-smoking-toad-venom-marijuana-facials-more-at-upscale-vape-pen-launch-1184740/ |archive-date=18 November 2021}}</ref> podcaster Joe Rogan,<ref name="Romero2022">{{cite news |last1=Romero |first1=Simon |title=Demand for This Toad's Psychedelic Toxin Is Booming. Some Warn That's Bad for the Toad. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/20/us/toad-venom-psychedelic.html |access-date=14 August 2022 |work=The New York Times |date=20 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320071142/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/20/us/toad-venom-psychedelic.html |archive-date=20 March 2022}}</ref> television personality Christina Haack,<ref name="Lopez221">{{cite news |last1=López |first1=Canela |title='Flip or Flop' star Christina Haack said smoking toad venom made her less egotistical and prepared her for a relationship |url=https://www.insider.com/christina-haack-flip-or-flop-smoking-toad-venom-cured-ego-2021-7 |access-date=14 August 2022 |work=Insider |date=July 2021}}</ref> and motivational speaker Anthony Robbins.<ref name="Chubb2021">{{cite news |last1=Chubb |first1=Hannah |title=Christina Haack Revealed She Smoked Psychedelic Toad Venom — But What Is It? A Doctor Explains |url=https://people.com/home/christina-haack-revealed-she-smoked-bufo-toad-venom-but-what-is-it-a-doctor-explains-all/ |access-date=14 August 2022 |work=People Magazine |date=12 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210712215511/https://people.com/home/christina-haack-revealed-she-smoked-bufo-toad-venom-but-what-is-it-a-doctor-explains-all/ |archive-date=12 July 2021}}</ref>

On October 31, 2022 the United States National Park Service posted a warning on Facebook that people should not handle or lick the toad.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://ftw.usatoday.com/2022/11/national-park-service-issues-unusual-but-fun-warning-about-toad |title=National Park Service issues unusual—but fun—warning about a toad|date=7 November 2022 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.facebook.com/nationalparkservice/posts/pfbid02mN2vn3ZASRDfih7mjfF6sC2J3CoJhLVTsPbHJLvhM2YQULYKS49Z4xTeR2n1y3e5l |title=Well that's toad-ally terrifying….|website=Facebook }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Kim |first=Juliana |date=2022-11-06 |title=The National Park Service wants humans to stop licking this toad |language=en |work=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/11/06/1134615997/the-national-park-service-wants-humans-to-stop-licking-this-toad |access-date=2022-11-08}}</ref> Despite the warning's wide coverage in media, the post was made humorously and the Park Service has no records of people licking or otherwise harassing the toads in parks.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Blevins |first=Jason |date=2022-11-18 |title=No, people aren't licking toads in national parks |url=http://coloradosun.com/2022/11/18/national-park-service-licking-sonoran-desert-toads/ |access-date=2022-11-18 |website=The Colorado Sun |language=en-US}}</ref>

===U.S. state laws=== thumb|Toad at night in Tucson

A substance found among the toxins the toad excretes when it is threatened, 5-MeO-DMT, is often dried into crystals and smoked. It is considered illegal in the United States, and categorized as a Schedule 1 substance, though law enforcement is increasingly less likely to enforce the laws with its growing popularity.<ref name=nyt>{{Cite news |last=Romero |first=Simon |date=2022-03-20 |title=Demand for This Toad's Psychedelic Toxin Is Booming. Some Warn That's Bad for the Toad. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/20/us/toad-venom-psychedelic.html |access-date=2022-08-25 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

The toads received national attention in 1994 after ''The New York Times Magazine'' published an article about a California teacher who became the first person to be arrested for possessing secretions of the toads.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/02/20/us/missionary-for-toad-venom-is-facing-charges.html|title=Missionary for Toad Venom Is Facing Charges|date=20 February 1994|newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/05/01/us/couple-avoid-jail-in-toad-extract-case.html|title=Couple Avoid Jail In Toad Extract Case|date=1 May 1994|work=The New York Times}}</ref> Bufotenin had been outlawed in California since 1970.<ref name="bnb">{{cite book|title=Brothers & beasts: an anthology of men on fairy tales|author=Bernheimer, Kate |isbn=978-0-8143-3267-2|year=2007|publisher=Wayne State University Press|pages=157–159|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AMagcGzh8CkC&pg=PA157}}</ref>

In November 2007, a man in Kansas City, Missouri, was discovered with an ''I. alvarius'' toad in his possession, and charged with possession of a controlled substance after they determined he intended to use its secretions for recreational purposes.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/toad-smoking-uses-venom-from-angry-amphibian-to-get-high|work=FOX News|date=3 December 2007|title='Toad Smoking' Uses Venom From Angry Amphibian to Get High|location=Kansas City}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Shelton, Natalie |date=7 November 2007|work=KC Community News|url=http://www.kccommunitynews.com/articles/2007/11/07/smithville_herald/news/g.sh.news.bad.candy.txt|title=Drug sweep yields weed, coke, toad|url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071214110048/http://www.kccommunitynews.com/articles/2007/11/07/smithville_herald/news/g.sh.news.bad.candy.txt|archive-date=14 December 2007}}</ref> In Arizona, one may legally bag up to 10 toads with a fishing license, but it could constitute a criminal violation if it can be shown that one is in possession of this toad with the intent to smoke its secretions.<ref name=autogenerated1>[http://www.azgfd.gov/pdfs/h_f/regulations/2007-2008ReptileRegulations.pdf AZGFD.gov] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080111133422/http://www.azgfd.gov//pdfs/h_f/regulations/2007-2008ReptileRegulations.pdf |date=2008-01-11 }}</ref>

None of the U.S. states in which ''I. alvarius'' is or was indigenous &ndash; California, Arizona, and New Mexico &ndash; legally allows a person to remove the toad from the state. For example, the Arizona Game and Fish Department is clear about the law in Arizona: "An individual shall not...export any live wildlife from the state; 3. Transport, possess, offer for sale, sell, sell as live bait, trade, give away, purchase, rent, lease, display, exhibit, propagate...within the state."<ref name=autogenerated1 />

=== Threatened species === Due to the rising popularity in collecting this toad, compounded with other threats such as motorists running over them, and predators such as raccoons eating them, U.S. states such as New Mexico and California have listed them as "threatened" and collecting ''I. alvarius'' is unlawful in those states.<ref>[http://www.nmcpr.state.nm.us/nmac/parts/title19/19.033.0006.htm 19.33.6 NMAC] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304050805/http://www.nmcpr.state.nm.us/NMAC/parts/title19/19.033.0006.htm|date=2016-03-04}}. nmcpr.state.nm.us</ref><ref>[http://www.nmcpr.state.nm.us/nmac/parts/title19/19.035.0010.htm 19.35.10 NMAC] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120910141532/http://www.nmcpr.state.nm.us/nmac/parts/title19/19.035.0010.htm|date=2012-09-10}}. nmcpr.state.nm.us</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://government.westlaw.com/linkedslice/default.asp?SP=CCR-1000 |title=Title 14. Division 1. Subdivision 1. Chapter 5., § 40(a)}}</ref> Collecting these toads is thought to cause stress to them, in particular during the process of "milking" where collectors rub the toads under the chin to cause it to secrete the poison in the form of a milky substance that is then scraped from the body of the toad. Robert Villa, who serves as president of the Tucson Herpetological Society, said in a 2022 ''New York Times'' interview, "There's a perception of abundance, but when you begin to remove large numbers of a species, their numbers are going to collapse like a house of cards at some point."<ref name=nyt/> thumb|Sonoran desert frog

Efforts to breed the toads in large quantities to offset their losses in the wild are criticized as potentially attracting predators to these areas, and creating a disease vector for pathogens such as chytrid fungus, which can then spread to devastate more of them in the wild. Synthetic forms of the drug that collectors seek in the toad poison are fairly easy to produce and may offset overcollection.<ref name=nyt/>

In June 2025, a study showed that persistent trapping of the toads in Mexico has decimated several populations, putting the species at risk of extinction.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Nuwer |first=Rachel |date=2025-07-10 |title=Sonoran Desert Toads, With Their Psychedelic Powers, Appear to Be in Decline |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/10/climate/psychedelic-sonoran-desert-toad.html |access-date=2025-07-12 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

== Controversies == The contemporary “toad medicine” scene has drawn criticism over unverified therapeutic claims, safety practices, and conservation impacts. Mexican physician Octavio Rettig Hinojosa has been a prominent promoter of smoking dried secretions from ''Incilius alvarius'', presenting the practice as a rediscovered Indigenous ritual and as a treatment for addiction among the Comcaac (Seri).<ref>{{cite magazine |last=de Greef |first=Kimon |title=The Pied Piper of Psychedelic Toads |magazine=The New Yorker |date=21 March 2022 |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/03/28/the-pied-piper-of-psychedelic-toads |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Horák |first1=Miroslav |last2=Mateos-Segovia |first2=Elizabeth |last3=Cortina-Bello |first3=Alí |title=Bufo alvarius: evidencias literarias y controversias en torno a su uso tradicional |journal=Medicina Naturista |year=2019 |volume=13 |issue=1 |pages=43–49 |language=es |url=https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=6761086}}</ref> However, fieldwork reported by Horák et al. documents fatal incidents during ceremonies (including drownings in rivers and cenotes and deaths among elderly participants with cardiac complications) and notes that, despite publicized “rehabilitation” efforts, many Seri individuals “continued using” methamphetamine—at times reportedly mixing methamphetamine pipes with toad secretion—based on 2017 eyewitness and community testimony cited by the authors.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Horák |first1=Miroslav |last2=Mateos-Segovia |first2=Elizabeth |last3=Cortina-Bello |first3=Alí |title=Bufo alvarius: evidencias literarias y controversias en torno a su uso tradicional |journal=Medicina Naturista |year=2019 |volume=13 |issue=1 |pages=43–49 |language=es |url=https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=6761086}}</ref>

Safety concerns have also featured in court proceedings. In Spain, the July 2019 death of photographer José Luis Abad during a “toad” ceremony led to the arrest of actor Nacho Vidal and others on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter; the case was provisionally archived in May 2023 but later revived, and as of October 2025 the Valencia prosecutor is seeking a four-year prison sentence related to the alleged negligent management of the rite and delayed medical assistance.<ref>{{cite news |title=Archivado el caso contra Nacho Vidal por la muerte de un fotógrafo en un rito del sapo bufo |work=El País |date=9 May 2023 |url=https://elpais.com/espana/comunidad-valenciana/2023-05-09/archivado-el-caso-contra-nacho-vidal-por-la-muerte-de-un-fotografo-en-un-rito-del-sapo-bufo.html |access-date=10 November 2025 |language=es}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=La Fiscalía pide cuatro años de prisión para Nacho Vidal por la muerte de un fotógrafo en el 'rito del sapo bufo' |work=El País |date=28 October 2025 |url=https://elpais.com/espana/comunidad-valenciana/2025-10-28/la-fiscalia-pide-cuatro-anos-de-prision-para-nacho-vidal-por-la-muerte-de-un-fotografo-en-el-rito-del-sapo-bufo.html |access-date=10 November 2025 |language=es}}</ref> Investigative reporting has also attributed several deaths worldwide to ceremonies linked to Rettig, while emphasizing the lack of clinical oversight and the variability of underground practices.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=de Greef |first=Kimon |title=The Pied Piper of Psychedelic Toads |magazine=The New Yorker |date=21 March 2022 |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/03/28/the-pied-piper-of-psychedelic-toads |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist|30em|refs= <ref name=Frost>{{cite web |url=https://amphibiansoftheworld.amnh.org/Amphibia/Anura/Bufonidae/Incilius/Incilius-alvarius |title=''Incilius alvarius'' (Girard, 1859) |author=Frost, Darrel R. |year=2021 |work=Amphibian Species of the World: An Online Reference. Version 6.1 |publisher=American Museum of Natural History |doi=10.5531/db.vz.0001 |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> }}

==Further reading== *{{cite journal | last1 = Frost | first1 = Darrel R. | year = 2006 | title = The Amphibian Tree of Life | journal = Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History | volume = 297 | pages = 1–370 | doi = 10.1206/0003-0090(2006)297[0001:TATOL]2.0.CO;2 | last2 = Grant | first2 = Taran | last3 = Faivovich | first3 = JuliÁN | last4 = Bain | first4 = Raoul H. | last5 = Haas | first5 = Alexander | last6 = Haddad | first6 = CÉLIO F.B. | last7 = De SÁ | first7 = Rafael O. | last8 = Channing | first8 = Alan | last9 = Wilkinson | first9 = Mark| last10 = Donnellan | first10 = Stephen C. | last11 = Raxworthy | first11 = Christopher J. | last12 = Campbell | first12 = Jonathan A. | last13 = Blotto | first13 = Boris L. | last14 = Moler | first14 = Paul | last15 = Drewes | first15 = Robert C. | last16 = Nussbaum | first16 = Ronald A. | last17 = Lynch | first17 = John D. | last18 = Green | first18 = David M. | last19 = Wheeler | first19 = Ward C. | s2cid = 86140137 |display-authors=etal| doi-access = free }} * {{cite journal | last1 = Pauly | first1 = G. B. | last2 = Hillis | first2 = D. M. | last3 = Cannatella | first3 = D. C. | year = 2004 | title = The history of a Nearctic colonization: Molecular phylogenetics and biogeography of the Nearctic toads (''Bufo'') | journal = Evolution | volume = 58 | issue = 11| pages = 2517–2535 | doi = 10.1111/j.0014-3820.2004.tb00881.x | pmid = 15612295 | s2cid = 10281132 | doi-access = free }}

==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20080725040632/http://www.arts.arizona.edu/herp/BUAL.html Arizona: Tucson Herpetological Society – pictures]

{{Psychedelics}} {{Serotonin receptor modulators}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q10534901}}

alvarius Category:5-HT2A agonists Category:Amphibians of Mexico Category:Amphibians of the United States Category:Causes of death Toad, Colorado River Category:Amphibians described in 1859 Category:Taxa named by Charles Frédéric Girard Category:Biological sources of psychoactive drugs Category:Psychedelic drugs Category:Psychedelic tryptamine carriers Category:Serotonin receptor agonists