UICN, list this species as critically endangered and it is included in the CITES Appendix II list (this means that it is victim of illegal wildlife trade). Habitat loss and degradation as a result of agricultural expansion as well as logging for the planting of illegal crops, are other main threats. This, plus its range of distribution of less than 10 km2 in an area that is severely fragmented and with continuously declining forest.
Oophaga lehmanni lives in the tropical rainforest, mainly on the ground; however, it occasionally climbs trees. As to the males, their paternal duties include carrying the tadpoles on their backs and taking them to bromeliads, the plants where they develop. The females, for their part, when they receive a call from the males, feed the tadpoles with their unfertilized eggs. Hence, the name of the genus oophaga, that is, that eats eggs.
This amphibian can be found in two regions of the Western Mountain Range: in the municipality of Dagua, near the Anchicayá River (Department of Valle del Cauca) and in the Alto del Oso, near San José del Palmar (Department of Chocó), between 600 and 1200 meters above sea level. It can also be found in the National Natural Park Farallones de Cali.
Currently, WCS coordinates the “Strategy for Amphibian Conservation” for the System of National Natural Parks of Colombia (PNNC, in Spanish), project with which it works in an integrated manner on behalf of this species with the National Natural Park Farallones de Cali.
As part of this strategy, financed by the Zurich Zoo, WCS supports these national parks in the formulation of a monitoring program for their amphibian populations and in the training of their employees on the matter.