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Noah's Ark for Amphibians
02/03/09 08:27 AM
If you're a frog, you may want to consider moving to Columbia
Amphibians are often described as the proverbial "canary in the coal mine" when it comes to environmental degradation. Because they have permeable skin and live both on land and in water, these creatures react sooner and more dramatically to pollution, climate change, ozone loss and other threats to our ecology. Simply stated, they are more vulnerable to changes in their environment than many other creatures, particularly toxic changes.
Almost a third of the planet's amphibians are facing extinction because of how badly we Homo sapiens have treated Mother Earth. Some may say, "So what? It's just a bunch of frogs." But that "bunch of frogs" saves millions of human lives by consuming huge quantities of mosquitoes that carry malaria, dengue fever and numerous other illnesses that plague the developing world.
But there is some good news. Columbia (which sits atop South America and borders Panama) appears to be something of a sanctuary for frogs and their various cousins. Recently, biologists discovered several new species of frogs there, as well as thriving populations of already known species, leading one conservationist to call Columbia the "Noah's Ark" of the amphibian world. This is even more promising because Columbia sits atop a migration corridor linking North and South America, providing the long-term opportunity to repopulate some areas that have suffered a loss of amphibians in recent years.
As you might expect, logging and deforestation are threatening this area, although it remains largely intact at this time. Let's hope we have the good sense to keep the amphibians' Noah's Ark in its natural state. All of life is a web, and whenever we sever one strand, it weakens all the rest.
Almost a third of the planet's amphibians are facing extinction because of how badly we Homo sapiens have treated Mother Earth. Some may say, "So what? It's just a bunch of frogs." But that "bunch of frogs" saves millions of human lives by consuming huge quantities of mosquitoes that carry malaria, dengue fever and numerous other illnesses that plague the developing world.
But there is some good news. Columbia (which sits atop South America and borders Panama) appears to be something of a sanctuary for frogs and their various cousins. Recently, biologists discovered several new species of frogs there, as well as thriving populations of already known species, leading one conservationist to call Columbia the "Noah's Ark" of the amphibian world. This is even more promising because Columbia sits atop a migration corridor linking North and South America, providing the long-term opportunity to repopulate some areas that have suffered a loss of amphibians in recent years.
As you might expect, logging and deforestation are threatening this area, although it remains largely intact at this time. Let's hope we have the good sense to keep the amphibians' Noah's Ark in its natural state. All of life is a web, and whenever we sever one strand, it weakens all the rest.