"William Morse"  wrote in message
news:cdfces$hn4$1{at}darwin.ediacara.org...
> >> > ``The Hooded Pitohui, and two close relatives, are the first
> >> > documented poisonous birds.''
> >> >
> >> >  - http://www.interaktv.com/articles/pitohui.htm

> The more interesting thing is that the bird, like monarch butterflies, gets
> its toxicity by sequestering a toxic compound produced by something else.
> The compound is the same one that makes poison dart frogs toxic. And
> (something I never knew) poison dart frogs are themselves only toxic by
> sequestration - if you raise them in a lab on feed that doesn't contain the
> poison they aren't toxic! Now I suppose I will have to do some more
> checking to find out if any animals that are toxic to eat (as opposed to
> those that use poison in other ways) produce their own poisons.

Well, here is a link for one widespread toxin which is used by at least
one species as an offensive poison, and "functions" posthumously in many
other species:
http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/motm/ttx/ttx.htm
This toxin is apparently produced by symbiotic bacteria - I guess that is
as good as "producing your own poison" for purposes of this discussion.

Curiously, there is one supposedly intelligent predator species that continues
to dine on one of the fish that carries this toxin, in spite of the danger.
http://www.destroy-all-monsters.com/fugu.shtml
Irresistable URL, neh?
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