Large toad native to the Sonoran Desert whose parotoid glands contain significant amounts of 5-MeO-DMT and bufotenine.
ECOLOGY & HABITAT
Lives in desert washes and irrigation canals. Emerges during summer rains.
Distribution
Sonoran Desert (Arizona, California, Mexico)
TRADITIONAL USE
- Modern discovery of 5-MeO-DMT in the toad occurred in the 1980s. Traditional use by indigenous peoples of the region is not well documented.
CULTURAL CONTEXT
Has become controversial due to over-harvesting pressure on wild populations and the rise of commercial 'toad medicine' retreats.
SEASONAL WINDOW
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Emerges during the Sonoran summer monsoon rains
REFERENCES
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- Erspamer 1965
- Davis 1987
- Modern ethnopharmacology