Scientists at Zoo Atlanta and Atlanta Botanical Garden Published in Science Magazine

	Additional information on the Panama Amphibian Crisis (PDF Document)

Policy Paper Establishes Plan for Addressing Worldwide Amphibian Decline Crisis.

ATLANTA-July 6, 2006- Dr. Joseph Mendelson, Curator of Herpetology at Zoo Atlanta and Ron Gagliardo, Curator of Tropical Collections at the Atlanta Botanical Garden, will be joined by forty-eight international stakeholders that include scientists, conservationists, veterinarians, and government officials on a policy paper to be published in the July 7 edition of Science Magazine. The group asks for immediate action in addressing the massive threat of extinction to amphibians across the globe.

The paper calls for the creation of The Amphibian Survival Alliance (ASA), a global organization to facilitate conservation programs. The organization will empower experts in range-countries to lead their own efforts to reverse amphibian decline brought on by many factors, but with special attention to the devastating losses resulting from the emerging infectious disease, chytridiomycosis, that is caused by fungus lethal to many amphibians. This alliance would operate under the Species Survival Commission of the IUCN (World Conservation Union), an international conservation organization.

Marsupial frogs

In working to address the myriad of threats to amphibians across the globe, ASA would implement protocols for addressing the crisis set forth in the Amphibian Conservation Action Plan that was formed at an international summit held in Washington, D.C., in September 2005. The ASA will prioritize building capacity in affected countries, so that conservation programs may remain based in native countries.

To justify the need for such immediate drastic action, the paper reviews recent publications and cites disturbing statistics concerning the current state of amphibians globally—32.5 percent of all described species are threatened by the chytrid fungus. In some instances, entire groups of species are being threatened with extinction.

In the case of chytridiomycosis, scientists can now predict that within 4–6 months of the arrival of the disease into a new area, up to 80% of individual amphibians may die, and up to 50% percent of amphibian species in the area may be permanently eliminated.

“We now have an unprecedented consensus among global experts that amphibian declines are real, underestimated, and largely unstoppable via conventional conservation programs,” said Dr. Joseph Mendelson, Zoo Atlanta curator of herpetology. “Numerous amphibian extinctions have been documented in fully protected natural areas.  This tells us that there is a need for a paradigm shift in conservation action to manage the threats of disease and climate change to amphibians across the globe.”

	Red-Eyed Tree Frogs

Dr. Mendelson, Mr. Gagliardo and the other authors call for a massive fundraising effort to provide $400 million in funding over five years for ASA, to coordinate and facilitate the broad range of conservation activities outlined in the Amphibian Conservation Action Plan.

 “While scientists address very challenging threats such as habitat loss, climate change and environmental contamination we should not overlook cases where some of the most critically threatened species are in dire need of preservation,” said Ron Gagliardo, curator of tropical collections at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. “We should take local action where appropriate to prevent further losses. Performing this type of work in-country is optimal and sharing the technical knowledge and resources with range countries will be a critical part of the ASA.”

Along with the creation of the ASA, the group calls for general global support, the uniting of conservation organizations to address the issue under this plan, and fundraising support from a variety of private, government and non-profit sources.

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