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"The world's amphibians
are facing an uphill struggle for survival", in the words of Amphibian
Specialist Group (ASG) co-chair James Collins. Recent news headlines
make this seem a definite understatement. Earlier this year, a deadly
fungal disease that has decimated amphibian populations around the world
was detected in the Philippines for the first time. In March,
conservationists had to airlift surviving mountain chickens (a species
of frog) out of Montserrat to prevent them from suffering the same fate.
This week, researchers warned that declines in the quality of its
habitat have brought Mexico's charismatic axolotl to the verge of
extinction.
So it's timely that a
summit held at the Zoological Society of London last week to discuss the
amphibian crisis concluded with the launch of the Amphibian Survival
Alliance. The new initiative brings together researchers working to
protect species and habitats in the wild with specialists who focus on
preserving species through captive breeding. Previous efforts to launch
the ASA, which was proposed in 2006 by 50 leading amphibian specialists,
were stymied by divided opinions about how best to allocate funds
between habitat protection and ex situ breeding programs. The
success of the first Amphibian Mini Summit last week is down to a new
acceptance that both strategies will be necessary to save many of the
world's amphibians, the most threatened group of vertebrates in the
world.
The Alliance will focus
on habitat loss and the pathogenic chytrid fungus, identified as the two
greatest causes of amphibian extinction and decline. The fungus is
thought to be responsible for species losses in Australia and the
Americas, and is now known from all six continents where amphibians
occur. Research into ways to eliminate the fungus from wild populations
is currently underway in Majorca, and desperately needed elsewhere. The
greater of the two threats, habitat destruction, may be harder to
address, as many amphibians have naturally restricted ranges and occur
in areas which are rapidly urbanising, particularly in Asia. However,
"If we want to stop the amphibian extinction crisis, we have to protect
the areas where amphibians are threatened with extinction", points out
Claude Gascon, the ASG's other co-chair.
To achieve its aims,
the Alliance will bring together zoos, research institutes and
collaborating conservation organisations to raise the profile of
amphibian conservation, and to implement the Amphibian Conservation
Action Plan (ACAP) drawn up by the International Union for the
Conservation of Nature. The cost of implementing ACAP has been set at
$400 million, yet Gascon estimates that less than 2% of this money has
been raised in the four years since the Action Plan was produced,
despite efforts to promote 2008 as the Year of the Frog and so raise
awareness of amphibians' plight.
Researchers hope that
the new initiative will improve coordination of both research and
fund-raising activities aimed at turning the tide on amphibian declines.
With funding pledged to support the post of Amphibian Survival Alliance
coordinator for two years, the world's amphibians now have a critical
ally in their struggle for survival. |
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