January 21, 2008
Frogs on “The EDGE”
Posted by pleasecroak under Chytrid fungus, The Edge, Zoo, captive breeding | Tags: Amphibian Ark, captive breeding, endangered species, london zoo, Year of the Frog, ZSL amphibian, ZSL the edge |
Bravo! to the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) for a compelling new focus on the amphibian crisis. ZSL has created a list of the most endangered of the most endangered amphibian species under the auspices of its new program titled, “The EDGE” (Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered). Here’s what it’s Web site says:
“EDGE Amphibians is following hot on the heels of EDGE Mammals. Unusual and endangered species like the Chinese giant salamander (the largest amphibian in the world at nearly 2 metres long), the Madagascan mantellas (the independently evolved Malagasy equivalent of the poison dart frogs) and the Mexican burrowing toad (which spends the majority of its life tunneling underground) will soon be displayed in the same format as the EDGE mammals so you can learn about their curious lives and how to protect them from extinction.
“Amphibians are suffering global, catastrophic declines due to habitat destruction, over-collection for the pet trade and food market, disease, climate change and introduced species. They are some of the most beautiful and enigmatic species on Earth and can tell us a lot about the condition of our environment.”
The news coverage is huge for The EDGE in the UK. There’s a BBC slide show of the most endangered species from The EDGE’s list. And here is a (frankly) much superior blog posting.
January 23, 2008 at 3:04 am
Fantastic coverage of the issues, Jeff. Your blog is an amazing source of information and support for those of us who are fighting for conservation and protection of our amphibians and amphibian wetland habitats — against ongoing development, whether it be roads, houses, or recreational.
There are less and less wetlands with meta-population connectivity. Sure we may be left with wetland pockets, but that is not good for the overall survival of genetic diversity among amphibians and other wildlife. Inbreeding of species will further compromise their viability.
Wetlands and amphibians seem to be a bit like Rodney Dangerfield — “They get no respect!”
Our own local wetland organization North Shore Wetland Partners (Vancouver, BC Canada) is “leapfrogging” onto the Year of the Frog, with activities of our own, hoping to save our disappearing,horribly degraded and fragmented temperate rain forest wetlands from development, pollution, pesticides, invasive species and recreational overuse.
Keep up the great work on your blog, Jeff.