Description
Phyllomedusa bicolor is a nocturnal tree frog that lives high in the tree canopies of the Amazon rainforest. Many tribes in the Amazon use Kambo for its therapeutic effects.
Our Ticuna Kambo sticks have a thick layer of secretion on one side. This should be enough for at least 60 to 100 dots. Two burn sticks are included.
We travel to the Ticuna tribe in the deep Peruvian Amazon to personally buy the Kambo sticks. We are grateful for being allowed to offer this traditional remedy to the world. Because there are no middlemen involved we know for sure that we have fresh stock and we guarantee sustainable and fair trade harvesting.
Each stick has the excretions of 3 to 5 large frogs. The sticks are 14 cm long and 2 cm wide.
Native use
Our Kambo is collected by Ticuna people who learned the Kambo tradition living as neighbors to the Matses. They are familiar with collecting and giving the Kambo. They live in the Oje Chico Community at the base of the Yavari River, in Loreto, Peru, not far from Brazil. The name of the community comes from the name of a very useful tree of the Moraceae family.
The community goes into the forest to look for Phyllomedusa bicolor right before sunrise. The Ticuna people know how to identify their songs very well. Once found, they take a few of them and hold them from their feet. They scratch their back without harming the frog. More like tickling it. Some frogs get stressed and some seemed more relaxed.
The community that harvests the venom from the Phyllomedusa bicolor frog revere it and goes to great lengths to protect it. The frog is treated with the utmost respect. People fear that if the spirit of the frog were to become angry, they would face serious consequences. We support this belief deeply. It is important to look for the frogs after a rainy night, it’s easier to find them when they seem to be more active.
In this community, all members are involved. However, it is usually the elders who collect the venom from the frogs and apply the Kambo. Young apprentices can also do it as part of their training.
Safe, ethical, sustainable and responsible use
The use of kambo has become more popular over the years outside of the indigenous communities. If you are called by the frog you could consider to contact a practioner of the International association of Kambo practioners (IAKP). The IAKP Practitioners have been trained to work within the boundaries of their code of practice. This means that you can be confident that these practitioners are safe people to be with and to take Kambo with.
Habitat
Males of the Phyllomedusa bicolor can grow to be between 9 and 10 centimeters long, while their female counterparts are a little bigger. The frog’s back is dark green and the belly is a yellow-white or cream color. There are two large prominent glands extending from behind the eyes that secrete the venom. Phyllomedusa bicolor can be found throughout the Amazon rainforests of northern Bolivia, western and northern Brazil, southeastern Colombia, eastern Peru, southern and eastern Venezuela, and the Guianas.
Different tribes have found different uses for this frog’s secretions. The Matses tribe traditionally uses the secretions from the glands behind the frog’s eyes. They do so to increase stamina, endurance, strength and dexterity for hunting as well as to bring good luck.
Other tribes who use the venom include the Matis, Kanamari, Kaxinawa, Katukina, Kulina, Yaminawa, Marubo, and other Ticuna tribes. The venom is extracted from the frog and used as a coating on the blow darts that are used to incapacitate their prey while hunting. Once the dart hits the animal the venom enters the bloodstream. The animal stops resisting and therefore becomes easy prey. The animal is then captured and killed for food.
Scientific information
Kambo has been found to contain various peptides which have been proven to strengthen the immune system. The peptide-rich venom has been shown to have anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties.
Additional Information:
Five Method To reduce overall risk when taking Kambo – Psychedelic Times
