2023-10-15 20:53:00
Survey shows that for every group of 5 amphibians, two are at imminent risk of disappearing from the Planet
The frog ‘Nyctimantis pomba’ was one of the species analyzed in the study. This amphibian occurs in Brazil and is threatened with extinction (Photo: Diego Santana)
UFMS (Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul) is part of a study produced by more than a thousand scientists from around the world that proved that more than 40% of the planet’s amphibians are threatened with extinction.
The conclusion of the extensive work that revealed a crisis in fauna was published in Nature Magazine. The survey showed that climate collapse, man-made destruction of ecosystems and diseases exacerbated by the two previous factors have led 2 out of 5 amphibians to the imminent risk of disappearing.
The work brings together scientific data produced over the last 20 years on the conservation status of around 8,000 species of amphibians, considered the most threatened animals on Earth.
Of these, 41% are classified as extinct, critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable. The assessment also concludes that, since 1980, 120 amphibian species have improved conservation status due to protection measures.
Based on the work, the aim is to prioritize conservation actions at a global level and promote conservation policies to reverse the serious scenario. For the co-author of the study and professor at the UFMS Biosciences Institute, Diego Santana, gathering data across borders is fundamental in this search for solutions.
“Conserving species at a regional level is super important, but there are species that are spread across more than one country and have common threats. So bringing together this team of researchers from all over the world is an extremely efficient way of planning how to conserve them”, he emphasizes.
The previous assessment produced at a global level was released in 2004 and already listed several established threats to these animals, such as diseases and destruction of their habitats. According to Professor Diego, the main novelty of the current study is the assessment of the impact of climate change, which constitutes the main threat to 39% of amphibians.
“For the first time, we are proving that climate change is causing amphibian extinctions now, in the present. Unfortunately, many species may still become extinct for the same reason”, he warns.
Melanophryniscus klappenbachi, found in the Porto Murtinho region (Photo: Diego Santana)
Brazil has the largest amphibian biodiversity in the world, being home to more than 1,200 species of toads, frogs, salamanders, among others. In the study released in 2004, 37 species found in Brazil were classified as having some degree of threat.
According to the current publication, 189 species are critically threatened, endangered or vulnerable. Additionally, 26 species were defined as possibly extinct, as they have not been sighted in natural environments since the 1980s or earlier.
Amphibians are animals that are found in both the aquatic and terrestrial environment and, when found in a given ecosystem, are important indicators of environmental health.
According to Diego Santana, the extinction of these species implies a serious imbalance for ecosystems. “They are predators of disease vectors and crop pests. If they go extinct, we lose these services and the health of ecosystems. But we need to think beyond the importance of an animal to humans in order to conserve it. If those animals exist, it’s because they have an entire evolutionary history, an important genetic load of the ecosystem that we have to protect. We cannot lose all this diversity”, he concludes.
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