Thursday, September 11, 2014

Lost frogs: finding the world's rarest amphibians

In order to address the massive decline and extinction of amphibians worldwide the Amphibian Survival Alliance is addressing the primary threats of habitat loss and disease. New reserves are being created to protect critical habitat for species such as this Guatemalan Brook Frog, Duellmanohyla soralia, and ensure a brighter future for frogs and for us.Cuchumatan Golden Toad, Incilius aurarius, from the Cuchumatanes mountains of Guatemala. The toad, only discovered and described as recently as 2012, was photographed during a recent search for the lost Jackson's Climbing Salamander.The beautiful and enigmatic harlequin frogs - of which there are around 120 known species - have been hardest hit by the global decline and extinction of amphibians worldwide, with many, such as these Panamanian Golden Frogs (Atelopus zeteki), disappearing from the wildYears and decades after the disappearance of some species, they reappeared to the surprise and amazement of the scientific community. The Variable Harlequin Frog, Atelopus varius, disappeared from the forests of Costa Rica and Panama before being rediscovered in 2003. The reappearance of these Lazarus frogs could help us decipher how we prevent these and other frogs succumbing to extinction.The Macaya Breast-spot Frog, Eleutherodactylus thorectes, is one of the smallest frogs in the world. This critically endangered species was last seen in 1991 on the Massif de la Hotte in southwest Haiti, before being rediscovered by Moore and team close to two decades later during the Search for Lost Frogs.An expedition in search of the Mesopotamia Beaked Toad in Colombia, last seen in 1914, led to the discovery of an entirely new species of beaked toad. The species was dubbed the Monty Burns Toad after Moore made a casual comparison to the nefarious villain in the Simpsons, and became TIME Magazine's #1 new species of 2010.
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