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Glass Frogs

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Glass Frogs
A beautiful country filled with a variety of creatures, Ecuador lies on the northwest boarder of South America. The climate there is humid, a suitable environment for the thriving animal population and the plethora of trees which cover the tropical floor of the Andes mountains. There is one animal, the glass frog, that is native to this country and has a unique physical characteristic. Glass frogs have made their home in the forests of Ecuador and Peru and feature a translucent underside which makes their internal organs visible. They live remarkable two-phase lives, hopping from tadpole to frog. But there is an issue that has developed in the region of Ecuador relating to these unique creatures. For reasons researcher are still discovering, …show more content…
This school has preformed extensive research concerning amphibians. They have come to find that there are 448 species of frogs and toads, 30 of which are extinct, and 250 of which are endangered. Mike Ceasar suggests that one of the reasons that these creatures are disappearing is because of their soft, permeable skin. They are significantly more defenseless against change in the environment. With the affects of ozone depletion in Ecuador, glass frogs are having to withstand a warmer overall temperature which can seriously affect them. Additionally, because of their metamorphic lives they are more susceptible to diseases and harmful …show more content…
Once there were eight frog and toad species that were native to the area of Quito, Ecuador, but now there are only two species left, and because of all the environmental change and increase in disease one of them is now endangered. In order to preserve these animals, a few years ago 10,000 individuals came together to sign a petition declaring the local zoology museum to be known as a frog park with these amphibious creatures being their main focus. As another means of anuran preservation, researchers in Ecuador are collecting tissues from different species of frogs referring to it as a potential Noah’s ark, hoping to bring these extinct animals back to life at some point in the future (Ceasar 1,

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