Where Have All the Amphibians Gone? Red eft (jevenile eastern newt). Credit: Dave Huth Amphibians are a part of many people’s childhood memories: Finding tadpoles, or “pollywogs,” in puddles; checking under logs for creepy, crawly newts; catching toads; or imitating the call of bullfrogs. Because amphibians are found in all kinds of environments, most of us can find some wherever we live. Growing up in Vermont, I was especially partial to the red eft, as the bright-orange, juvenile stage of the eastern newt is sometimes known. In this stage, they are land-dwelling before they head back to the water for adulthood. I used to like to count them when I went on walks with my mom and the dog. If you’ve been counting your own local amphibians in recent years, you may have noticed a decline.
Well-camouflaged oak toad. Amphibian decline is bad news for ecosystems, as they play an important role in the food web as both prey for larger animals and predator for smaller ones. Young Surinam toads emerge from their mother’s back.
To control cannibal toads, you just need the right bait | Not Exactly Rocket Science. Burundi frog, once feared extinct, rediscovered. For 62 years, scientists have feared that a tiny spotted frog with a curiously long finger had been driven to extinction by the civil warfare, political turmoil and shrinking habitats that have marked the African nation of Burundi. But the fears are largely over. A new curator at the California Academy of Sciences - a man with a singular dedication and a sharp sense of hearing - has just rediscovered the lost amphibian thriving in a Burundian forest preserve.
Belgian biologist Raymond Laurent discovered the curious frog in 1949 and gave it the scientific name of Cardioglossa cyaneospila. He found it living almost 5,000 feet high in a forest named Bururi at a time when Burundi was virtually ruled by Belgium. It has been known ever since as the Bururi long-fingered frog. And it was never seen again - until now. High-pitched 'peep' The two men camped near the spot where Laurent had discovered his long-fingered frog 63 years ago. The fifth night was the payoff.
Elongated finger. 100 years ago: Frogs behaving like squatters | Environment. Common Frog (Rana temporaria) Photograph: Paul Glendell/Alamy We seldom meet the wandering frog or see its crushed corpse on the road; on its nocturnal travels it usually dodges the dangerous wheel or boot. Yet the frog certainly covers considerable distances when seeking fresh feeding grounds. In my own garden there is one small area – very small – reserved for marsh plants and all summer this spot is guarded by two or three frogs; elsewhere in the garden frogs are mere casuals. There is no water in which tadpoles are reared in the immediate neighbourhood, and it is reasonable to suppose that the place is discovered by chance.
The frogs vary in size, and sometimes a new arrival may be recognised.