WHERE HAVE ALL THE FROGGIES GONE?

Paul Cummins
Mirror contributing writer

   I have some startling news for the Bush administration which I am certain it will want to immediately attend to with all the might of its power and wisdom. The news is this: frogs, salamanders and their kin are disappearing all over the world. Recently, a global estimate conducted by an international team found a decline of 60 to 70 percent in the past few decades! 
   “Some areas have suffered even more severely and 20 species are presumed extinct.” (The Chronicle of Higher Education, April 20, 2001). 
   Now, while I am certain this news will spur Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney into immediate action, just in case others in their administration are not concerned, I offer the following concerns not only of mine, but of scientists all over the world. (For those citizens and the Bush administration folks interested, I suggest reading The Worldwatch Institute’s annual book, State of the World 2001.)
   The sudden decline of amphibians all over the world is of concern for a variety of reasons. One, these creatures have been in existence for over 350 million years and have survived three mass extinctions. Yet, in a historic wisk, they are disappearing. Two, these creatures are our ancestors. They were the first vertebrates to evolve from water to land, and after them came other vertebrates — reptiles, birds, mammals, and us! And, according to Ashley Mattoon, in her Worldwatch article “Deciphering Amphibian Declines,” she writes, “Given their durability and ubiquity, the rapid decline of so many species is particularly unsettling...Many scientists claim that amphibians are important bio-indicators -- a sort of barometer of Earth’s health.” 
   And this is, of course, the major issue. It isn’t just frogs that are disappearing. The frogs’ disappearance is a manifestation of environmental degradation in general, and the health of all living creatures is inextricably intertwined. But back to frogs for a few moments.
   What are the causes of the rapid disappearance of frogs? Scientists have some but not all the answers. There are, however, a few clear factors. One, and the leading cause, is habitat loss.  According to Professor Rick A. Reyala, a biologist at the University of Pittsburgh, “It [habitat loss] is the dominant factor in the declines of most animals -- that we are taking their habitat away.” How? By urban sprawl, by clear-cutting and logging and other deforestation measures, by eliminating rain forests and wetlands and streambeds, by conversion of grasslands to farms and suburban developments -- the whole sorry list. The major culprit in all this habitat loss is us -- homo sapiens. So, theoretically, we could, if we wake up in time, reverse some of the damage we have done, are doing, and -- if not addressed -- will continue to do.
   The second major cause is the use of toxic pesticides in all their various forms. Study after study shows that this is so even in seemingly pristine areas where no humans are present. But, alas, our pesticides are brought in by the wind, by streams and underground watersheds. According to Richard Monastersky, “This scenario seems to be playing out in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California where frog populations have declined precipitously even in national parks.” (The Chronicle of Higher Education, April 20, 2001)
   A third cause is climate change. And here, Mr. Bush, we have some real hard science where experiments have shown that global warming “has exerted a subtle but profound effect -- killing off toads [in Oregon] there through a complex series of changes.” (Richard Monastersky)
   A fourth cause is human introduction -- placement of non-native species into certain areas where they then feed upon the amphibians causing further disruption to the ecological balance.
   So, why should we care about frogs? Because, as I said earlier, they are literally our ancestors, because they are beautiful and interesting, because they are living, complex chemical factories, and their loss “could also mean the loss of potential cures for many common [human] ailments” (Ashley Mattoon), because they are sensitive creatures that may well be “canaries in a coal mine” showing us impending problems for all species including our own, and, finally, because they share this earth with us and are an important part of the ecological chain -- that’s why.
   I know this news will not come as a surprise to Mr. Bush — a notoriously sensitive environmentalist — but I hope he will enlighten his fellow administration colleagues so that they will jump right on this problem. But, in case it slips his mind, perhaps you too, gentle reader, will spread the word of our alarming loss of frogs. Killing off our frog population spells equally serious trouble for all of us who live on this planet. In short, every environmental problem the frogs face confronts us as well. We are all in this together. A planet with sick and dying frogs is not a healthy planet for humans.
   Paul Cummins is the President of Crossroads School, a founder of New Roads School, and the Executive Director of the New Visions Foundation.