Jeff Corwin lobbies against mass extinctions

I just got an email message from Jeff Corwin (OK, a lot of people got the same email) on behalf of Defenders of Wildlife. Jeff has been a great friend to Amphibian Ark. He’s taped PSAs you can find on YouTube. He talked about Amphibian Ark and held up a Panamanian Golden Frog on the Ellen Degeneres show. Here’s the email message from him:

Dear Jeff,

Yesterday, I was in Washington, DC to testify on behalf of Defenders of Wildlife before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies.

My message was simple and urgent: Within my youngest daughter’s lifetime, 20-30% of the world’s known species may be on the brink of extinction if we do not act now to address the impacts of global warming on our wildlife.

Congress has heard from me. Now they need to hear from you, Jeff.

Please send your U.S. Representative a message today and urge him or her to dedicate just 5% of the anticipated revenue from new global warming cap and trade legislation to safeguard wildlife and ecosystems in a warming world.

As a wildlife biologist and host of my own show on Animal Planet, I’ve seen the devastating effects that global warming is already having on our world’s wildlife and their habitat.

I have been to the North Pole to study the iconic polar bear, whose habitat is melting away before our eyes.

I’ve traveled the world studying the decline in the planet’s already-vulnerable amphibians – a decline that threatens up to one-third of our amphibian species. And scientists fear that climate change could dramatically accelerate these devastating losses.

But you don’t have to go to the ends of the Earth to find the effects of global warming on our wildlife. The pika and the wolverine in the Rockies, our nation’s waterfowl, even fish, shrimp and oysters are already in trouble.

Join me in urging Congress to protect wildlife threatened by global warming. Please send a message to your U.S. Representative today.

As a biologist, I firmly believe that we should not only reduce carbon emissions that are fueling global warming, but also expand our scientific understanding of global warming’s impacts on the living world.

Without this knowledge, we cannot develop and implement an effective strategy to safeguard our precious wildlife in a warming world. Please urge Congress to take action for our wildlife today.

These are exhilarating and challenging times that we live in. But with the help of caring people like you, I know we can secure the resources, knowledge and action that we need to give our vulnerable wildlife a better chance to survive the threat of global warming.

Sincerely,

Jeff Corwin

 

Panama’s disappearing frogs

A terrific story in Friday’s Christian Science Monitor (story HERE) reports on the valiant efforts to stave off amphibian extinctions in Panama. The story details the work of a Panamanian with the tattoo of a toad on his calf who has teamed with a Wisconsin woman who used to be in the Peace Corps. The ravages of chytrid are detailed. A very good read. Good to see the connection to Amphibian Ark, and good to see quotes from the Ark’s Kevin Zippel.

 

It’s just the coolest frog video, and first time I’ve seen it on YouTube

The day Jeff Corwin and Ellen DeGeneres jumped aboard Amphibian Ark.

 

Houston Zoo, Panamanian Golden Frog, and Houston Toad

Comprehensive story in today’s Houston Chronicle about the groundbreaking work being done on the amphibian crisis by the Houston Zoo, specifically to save both the Panamanian Golden Frog and the Houston toad. Nice to see that Jeff Corwin’s quoted, along with Joe Mendelson of Zoo Atlanta, both longtime figures with Amphibian Ark. Excerpts:

 The Houston Zoo, among a handful of U.S. zoos to successfully breed golden frogs in captivity, stepped in to help the frog on its home turf, building the El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center in the Panamanian mountains to provide refuge for golden frogs and other amphibians threatened by chytrid. Ultimately, the goal is to release them back into the wild, although no one knows when, or even if, that will be possible. The conservation center hopes to open a public viewing area in El Valle later this year, according to Bill Konstant, director of science and conservation for the Houston Zoo. It also plans to establish a satellite colony at Summit Zoo in Panama City, allowing more people to see the frogs that once thrived in the wild. That will coincide with a Year of the Frog awareness campaign, set to launch in Panama on Feb. 29, Leap Day.

 The story talks about a Texas species that also needs a lot of help — the Houston toad.

 Brown and dry, it looks pretty much like the Gulf Coast toad that may be living in your backyard. The Houston toad once ranged from east of Houston to Bastrop but hasn’t been seen in Houston since 1976. The only remaining colony large enough to sustain itself is in Bastrop County, protected in Bastrop State Park and on private land whose owners have agreed to help. The toads are also found in a few other counties but in groups too small to be assured of survival. The toads burrow into sandy soil, seeking refuge from summer heat and winter cold. They need still or slow-flowing water to breed, usually a small pond, blocked sections of creek or seeping springs. The first Houston toad infected by the chytrid fungus was found in Bastrop in 2006, but scientists don’t yet know whether that is contributing to the dwindling numbers. The zoo first tried to boost the Houston toad population in the 1980s, with limited success. Last year, it tried again as part of the federal species-recovery plan designed for the toad. 

 

Panamanian Golden Frog: preview from “Life in Cold Blood”

Fascinating footage of the Panamanian Golden Frog from Sir David Attenborough’s final earth series, “Life in Cold Blood.” A BBC story reported this about the footage:

Just after filming was completed in June 2006, the location was overtaken by the chytrid fungus.

Scientists were forced to remove the remaining frogs from the wild and keep them in captivity.

“The whole species is now extinct in Panama – this was one of the last remaining populations. Its final wave was in our programme.”

Chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) is a major contributor to the decline of amphibian populations around the world, threatening many species with extinction.