The extinctions and the opportunity

My conversations with Matt also included his frank assessment that high altitude frogs that lived in the speciose tropical jungles of Central and South America were going extinct. Matt had been to other sites and experienced the disappearance of the frogs. My knowledge of amphibian declines remained academic. But, Matt’s concern spurred me to look more deeply into the literature. What I found there was startling. Matt was just telling a small part of the story, albeit one that involved the potential extinction of tens of species or more.

It was clear that amphibians everywhere were declining or disappearing all together. The causes of amphibian declines and extinctions were not generally agreed upon at this point and were a matter of debate. The fact that declines and extinctions were occurring globally was becoming more and more alarming to the herpetologists who study frogs, toads, salamanders, and reptiles around the world.


What is particularly worrisome about many of the declines is that they were happening across the world’s natural areas, often in relatively pristine habitats. Southeast Australia had been hard-hit. Many species along the Pacific coasts of North America were in decline. Declines were also documented from the jungles of northern South America and Central America. Madagascar, China, and the Atlantic coast of Brazil all had substantial numbers of threatened amphibians. 
These frogs were being lost from among the most beautiful natural habitats occurring on earth. The luxurious jungles with their riot of plant, insect, and other animal variety are the cradles of biodiversity on our planet. These wet, warm habitats are perfect for frogs. The causes and consequences of amphibian declines are not always known or understood. Unfortunately, reports in the scientific magazines seemed to focus on the controversy over causes as much as the tragedy.

As a nature lover, thoughts of potential extinctions and their consequences were disturbing. Matt was offering the possibility of seeing the tropical jungle again, and this was enticing. The Central American jungle with its in-your-face diversity originally inspired my decision to become a field biologist rather than a laboratory chemist. These factors led me to get involved in Matt’s project. I tend to be protective of my time, travel takes me away from home and family, depletes research funds, burns fossil fuels creating greenhouse gasses, and impedes getting “real” work done. Now, I am glad I took the trip and did the research and the following story is a chronicle of travel to Panama, the people I worked with, the work we did, and the people and sites of Central America.