Frogs: first to go, dying out

Nature reports that global warming is killing world's amphibians. A skin fungus may be responsible. This fungus is believed to slowly suffocate frogs by attacking the skin through which they breathe. (Thank goodness for those intro Bio classes! Kudos to ES 212, too!) Why is our government still debating about this serious issue? What more evidence do we need?

The dramatic decline of some frog populations is directly connected to global warming, a new study claims.

The scientists looked at biodiversity hotspots in Central and South America, and found compelling links between frog extinctions and changes in temperature.

There may be other factors that lead to the decline of these amphibians. For instance, thinning of the ozone layer, destruction of habitat is certainly a problem, pollution is probably connected to the decline. Similar to the catfish as the keystone species of the river, these amphibians are considered the indicator species of the environment because they are the first to be affected by the degradation.
The graph on the left projects changes in global temperature: global averages 1856–1999 and projection estimates to 2100. The IPCC is the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that access the "risk of human-induced climate change".

Over the past century, the world has warmed by about 1.0°C. Many scientists believe that global temperatures will rise an additional 1°C–3.5°C by the year 2100. Although just a few degrees may not seem like much, a warming of this magnitude will have profound effects on the Arctic. The Arctic ice cap will melt completely, ocean levels will rise, the treeline will shift, and the permafrost will melt in many areas.

Politicians need to stop pussyfooting around this matter. We only have one earth.