Amphibian Conservationists Borrow Tactics from Online Dating
11/14/2011
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| Lonely frog seeking princess. Likes swimming, long hops by the lake, catching flies. Photo: John Wheeler |
Online daters can compare the process of finding "the one" to kissing frogs, but a new effort by
They’ve set up a program to match conservation organizations, zoos, and interested donors, to on-the-ground projects devoted to saving frogs. Taking a page from online dating they call it, “FrogMatchMaker.com, where frogs find their princes."
According to program director Kevin Zippel, raising awareness of these projects could be crucial to save vulnerable and threatened species. Zippel says, “For every one species of bird or mammal in trouble, there are two to three amphibian species on the brink of extinction.”
The IUCN estimates that nearly a third of amphibian species are in danger of extinction if not already extinct, a crisis exacerbated in certain parts of the world by a deadly fungus that has wiped out more than 200 species.
Amphibian Ark hopes their matchmaking site will help fight this decline. They list projects spanning three continents by region, species, cost, and category. Requests range from monetary donations (starting at $1,500) to staff, equipment, and training.
As conservation blog mongabay.com reports, among the first success stories of the site has been a match-up between the Denver Zoo and a project to save the Lake Titicaca Frog. We’ve highlighted these remarkable Peruvian amphibians before on The Perch, and can only hope that this is the beginning of many beautiful friendships for frogs and their fans everywhere.
Comments
frogs are cute!
frogs are cute!
but you'd never kiss one!
but you'd never kiss one!
lol nope!
lol nope!
Idealogical fury and
Idealogical fury and righteous anger misdirected towards an innocent blog that shares my concerns! Coherent syntax and standard grammar reduced to rubble by my Thoreau impulses, whose Walden-evoked placidity are wrought asunder by sheer naturalistic rage! I proclaim myself master of the universe and hereby correct all earthly conundrums!
Is there a reason they've
Is there a reason they've decided to focus on larger dollar donors greater than $1000? I couldn't find any funding options under $1500 - seems that they're focused on a certain category of donations...
That's a great question and
That's a great question and thanks for asking! Though I can't speak for AArk, I do think the bulk of their partnerships are with zoos, universities, and large conservation organizations (groups in a position to give specialized supplies or invest larger sums). The aim is really to raise the profile of these smaller, on-the-ground research and conservation projects by connecting them to bigger institutions with similar goals. If you are interested in getting involved you can definitely send a comment to AArk (visit http://www.amphibianark.org/about-us/contact-us/ for contact info) or contacting a project directly using the information in their listing to learn about what else you could do to help out!
-Daisy Yuhas
How can large numbers of
How can large numbers of human beings with feet of clay not see that the Earth is being overpopulated by the human species? Humanity appears to be on the verge of precipitating some sort of unimaginable global ecological wreckage. Scientists readily located virtually everywhere on the surface of Earth in our time have unaccepted responsibilities to assume and unfulfilled duties to perform by speaking out loudly and clearly about whatsoever is believed to be true with regard to the incredible human-driven planetary emergency that looms so ominously in the offing. Can it be that ideological idiocy and outrageous greed of a tiny minority of self-proclaimed masters of the universe will be permitted to rule the world and bring about its ruin on our watch?