Frogs move nutrients through ecosystems. Tadpoles are like aquatic cows, consuming algae and other aquatic vegetation and taking that biomass onto land when they metamorphose into frogs. In areas where frogs have gone extinct, ponds become choked with algae, with detrimental consequences for other aquatic creatures.
Frogs also provide us with numerous medicines used to treat a variety of conditions, from depression to cancer.
Finally, frogs are the environment's canaries in the coal mine. With their thin, permeable skin, they are exquisitely sensitive indicators of harmful chemicals in the environment. Their disappearance is a sign that something is amiss.
So why are these animals declining so rapidly? The answer is complex. Frogs and toads face the same threats as other species, including habitat loss and climate change. But they are also being killed by an amphibian-specific skin fungus that has spread from Africa to South America, Australia, and elsewhere, attacking species with no natural resistance to it.
Recognizing the crisis facing amphibians and the potential to have a species-saving impact, the Philadelphia Zoo has established a new amphibian conservation program. It's dedicated to saving endangered frogs through efforts in their native habitats as well as rescue and breeding at the zoo. The program is currently focused on Haiti and the highlands of Ecuador, which are home to a particularly high number of unique and at-risk frog species.
