Smithsonian scientists have confirmed that chytridiomycosis, a rapidly spreading amphibian disease, has reached a site near Panama’s Darien region. This was the last area in the entire mountainous neotropics to be free of the disease. This is troubling news for the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project, a consortium of nine U.S. and Panamanian institutions that aims to rescue 20 species of frogs in imminent danger of extinction. [...more]
Any adventurer, hiker or backyard naturalist with a camera can help scientists survey and hopefully save the world’s amphibians thanks to a new social networking site that links “citizen scientists” with researchers tracking the decline of amphibians around the globe. [...more]
This strawberry dart frog is one of more than 100 species of poison dart frog found in the rainforests of Central and South America and on a few of the Hawaiian Islands. Vibrant, toxic and less than 1 inch to 2.5 inches long, scientists believe these frogs gain their poison from specific [...] [...more]
They look cute, but don't be fooled: red-eyed treefrogs have a secret dark side. When Michael Caldwell, of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, filmed the frogs under infrared light he saw the frogs vigorously shaking the branches they were sitting on. Segment produced by Flora Lichtman at Science Friday Footage and images courtesy Michael Caldwell, Karen Warkentin and Venetia S. Briggs
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As researchers investigate the impact of the Burmese python in the Everglades, scientists from the Smithsonian Institution, South Florida Natural Resources Center and the University of Florida examined the snake’s predation of the area’s birds. They found that birds, including endangered species, accounted for 25 percent of the python’s diet in the Everglades. [...more]
National Zoo Veterinarian Katharine Hope treats about 2,000 animals from 400 different species. She and her colleagues care for a variety of animals, from small baby flamingos to adult Asian elephants, so there's no such thing as an average day. [...more]
Join National Zoo Conservation Biologist Brian Gratwicke in his work to save Panama's amphibians from extinction. You can also catch up on his dispatches from the field on the Panamanian Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project's blog: http://amphibianrescue.org/ [...more]
Although the La Loma tree frog, Hyloscirtus colymba, is notoriously difficult to care for in captivity, the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project is the first to successfully breed this species. [...more]
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