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Eight - Amphibians

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 April 2023

By
Phillip J. Bishop† ,
Sally Wren ,
Ariadne Angulo  and
Richard A. Griffiths
Edited by
Norman Maclean
Norman Maclean
Affiliation:
University of Southampton
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Summary

Amphibians are the most threatened vertebrate class on Earth. They play important roles in ecosystems and are often cited as sentinels of environmental health. Around 84% of the 8208 amphibian species have been assessed by The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with 41% categorised as threatened with extinction. As is the case with other species, the main threatening process for many amphibians is habitat destruction, disturbance and fragmentation. However, amphibians are also highly vulnerable to emerging infectious diseases, climate change, invasive species and pollution. These threats often interact, resulting in complex impacts on amphibian populations. Fortunately, there are several initiatives (IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group (ASG), Amphibian Survival Alliance (ASA) and the Amphibian Ark(AArk)) focused on understanding and protecting the many threatened species through global coordination, conservation planning, habitat protection, supporting conservation action, fundraising, emergency rescues and captive breeding for conservation. Diverse amphibian lifestyles, coupled with the complexity of threats, means that different species will respond in different ways and in different places. Consequently there are likely to be ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ in a changing world, rather than complete extinction of a class. Amphibian conservation therefore remains one of the greatest challenges of our times.

Keywords

AmphibiansFrogToadSalamanderTadpoleSeasonal changesHibernationRain forestClimate change
Type
Chapter
Information
The Living Planet
The State of the World's Wildlife
 , pp. 153 - 176
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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