Amphibian populations are in trouble. According to the Amphibian
survival Alliance (amphibians.org)
entire species are being driven to extinction by threats that include loss of
habitat, disease, contamination and climate change. At least one third of all
Amphibians are classified as threatened (Hoffman, et. al, 2010; Biega, et. al,
2017). Conservation initiatives are needed to reverse this trend. Biega, et.
al. examined “the extent to which zoos house species representing the greatest
overall conservation priority by testing how eight variables relating to
extinction risk – International Union for the Conservation of Nature status,
habitat specialization, obligate stream breeding, geographic range size, body
size and island, high-altitude and tropical endemism – vary between amphibian
species held in zoos and their close relatives not held in zoos” (Biega, et.
al. page 113).
You can read methods and results from this study published
in Animal Conservation, Vol 20, Issue 2 [Full citation below].
To summarize the article briefly, researchers found that
zoos and other ex situ programs as a whole are not targeting the high risk
amphibian species. If range-restricted habitat specialist species are not a
focus, populations will continue to decline without a safety net. Researchers
suggest that zoos increase their conservation-focused amphibian species
holdings.
Reference:
Biega, A., Greenberg, D.A., Mooers, A.O., Jones, O.R.,
Martin, T.E., 2017. Global representation of threatened amphibians ex situ is
bolstered by non-traditional institutions, but gaps remain. Animal
Conservation. Volume 20, Issue 2. Pages 113–119. DOI: 10.1111/acv.12297
Hoffman, M., Hilton-Taylor, C., Angulo, A., Bohm, M., Brooks,
T.M., Butchart, S.H., Carpenter, K.E., et al. (2010).The impact of conservation
on the World’s vertebrates. Science 330, 1503–1509.
Image credit: Amphibians.org
