RP376 The Cold-Blooded Collapse

 RP376 The Cold-Blooded Collapse

Frogs, toads, and salamanders were the earliest vertebrate life-forms to walk on land. This accomplishment happened about 350 million years ago. Since then, amphibians have gone extinct at a rate of one species every 250 years. That is until humanity arrived and altered Earth's natural balance.
Recently, the extinction rate of amphibians has increased dramatically. Since 1980, over 200 species of amphibians have disappeared from the planet forever, and it's about to get a lot worse. Another 1,856 species are currently facing the threat of extinction. These shocking numbers are causing a worldwide scramble as scientists desperately seek to understand what is behind this amphibian collapse.
It seems that mass amphibian extinction is being caused by several factors. First and foremost is the destruction of natural habitats. As humans continue to tear down forests and build houses in their place, we disrupt ecology all over the planet. Global warming is also adding to the damage. Frogs, toads, and salamanders have evolved in a highly specialized way in order to live in specific habitats. Subtle changes in global temperatures can disrupt their ability to survive.
It's not just humans who are the problem. A deadly disease called chytridiomycosis has ravaged amphibian populations in the Americas and Australia. Amphibians that are infected with this fungus die within weeks. Scientists don't even know where it came from, let alone how to stop it.
Scientists often classify amphibians as bio-indicators. This means that they' re more sensitive to changes in their environment than other organisms are. Frogs, toads, and salamanders are like an early-warning system that can show us what will happen to other species that suffer similar environmental destruction. Therefore, since amphibians are going extinct at an astonishing rate, it's quite possible that birds and mammals won't be far behind.
We may also be losing a wealth of medical science from amphibian collapse. Around 10 percent of all of the Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine have involved research on amphibians. That means that every species that disappears is one that might have cured a terrible disease.