Amphibian Display

[fbrem]

In mid-October, after many hours of set up and getting the necessary permits and safeguards, I was able to open up a small amphibian display designed to inform visitors of the current amphibian biodiversity crisis, some of the primary causes, and some of the research that is being done in these areas. The display includes 5 species, three TN natives and two Central American species, that were either part of a research project and now retired or were extra metamorphs that were lucky and never a part of a project. (This display was done as an alternative to euthanasia for these frogs, and all animals in this display were captive raised from eggs). And to make things even nicer I've been rotating in blooming orchids, carnivores, and other interesting plants.

whole exhibit

Anaxyrus fowleri terrarium

Anaxyrus fowleri

Hyla chrysoscelis

Hylomantis lemur terrarium

Phrag. Court Jester w/ H. lemur in background

Phrag. Court Jester

Forrest

 

[JeanLux]

Congratulations!!!! Great job Forrest!!! Jean

 

[NYEric]

Excellent! Thanx for sharing.

 

[biothanasis]

Great work Forrest!!! :clap:

 

[Candace]

Neat.

 

[SlipperFan]

Great job, Forrest!

Why would the critter have had to be euthanized? Couldn't make it on their own in nature?

 

[swamprad]

Very impressive, Forrest! Very nice Court Jester, too.

 

[John M]

Very interesting and a beautiful Phrag. Court Jester!

 

[KyushuCalanthe]

Cool!

 

[fbrem]

Great job, Forrest!

Why would the critter have had to be euthanized? Couldn't make it on their own in nature?

This is one of the most frequently asked questions when I discuss my research, and often the hardest to explain because individual ethics are involved and not purely science so here goes...
It is unlikely that captive raised animals can be safely reintroduced into the wild, first because they are naive to wild conditions (as even the simplest of organisms needs to learn how to survive), and second it can be disasterous to natives populations.
I study transmission and host pathogen interactions between amphibians and the frog killing disease amphibian chytridiomycosis which is caused by the mostly exotic fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. It was most likely the release of infected captive animals that let this pathogen out of it's cage to cause the extinction of hundreds of wild species. In general, it is never, never, never good practice to release any captive organisms, native or exotic, back into wild populations because you not only release them but also the organisms that come along with them. And if native species are naive and highly susceptible to anything that is released with captive animals, as is the case with amphibians and Bd, you generally get an epizootic (=epidemic but in animals) and either severe population declines or extinctions of the population or even species. Avian malaria in Hawaii; chestnut blight, dutch elm disease, and southern pine beetles in the US, and even small pox and influenza are all prime examples of this. In all, it pains me greatly to euthanize anything, and I save as many as I can, but the preservation and conservation of wild populations is of utmost importance to me and is the main goal of my research. Thus, I feel the use of captive raised amphibians to try to learn enough to help wild populations is not only justified but necessary if we are to have any imact on the current global loss of amphibian biodiversity. In all I love nature too much to risk damaging it so I can feel better about not euthanizing my research animals.

 

[jblanford]

WOW!!! What an "AWESOME" display, good job and thanks.... Jim.

 

[Rick]

That's a very cool display Forest.

I'm planning on coming out to Memphis in January so I hope I'll get a chance to visit.

Your stance on in-vitro breeding programs doesn't leave a lot of options for species that are virtually extinct now.

I know there are definite risks to putting animals and plants "back" into the wild, but I can think of several programs where captive produced organisms have successfully augmented wild populations without disease outbreaks.

However, the need for captive breeding programs has limited utility if the primary reason for a species decline is loss of habitat.

 

[SlipperFan]

This is one of the most frequently asked questions ... In all I love nature too much to risk damaging it so I can feel better about not euthanizing my research animals.

Good explanation.
It just seems a waste to have to euthanize such critters. I can't help wondering if there are zoos or collections, or places like what you've done that would benefit from having the creatures you can't use anymore. I suppose, though, that it may take more time and effort to locate such places than most can do. I do laud you for this display, and your effort to save these critters and educate the people who are lucky enough to see them.

 

[fbrem]

That's a very cool display Forest.

I'm planning on coming out to Memphis in January so I hope I'll get a chance to visit.

Your stance on in-vitro breeding programs doesn't leave a lot of options for species that are virtually extinct now.

I know there are definite risks to putting animals and plants "back" into the wild, but I can think of several programs where captive produced organisms have successfully augmented wild populations without disease outbreaks.

However, the need for captive breeding programs has limited utility if the primary reason for a species decline is loss of habitat.

Yeah, guess that was a little hardcore on the precautionary side. Successful reintroductions can be done successfully, like with the corroborree frog and a few others, it just needs to be done very carefully by considering every possible aspect. Thanks for the good point.

 

[goldenrose]

:clap: :clap: :clap:

 

[Rick]

Yeah, guess that was a little hardcore on the precautionary side. Successful reintroductions can be done successfully, like with the corroborree frog and a few others, it just needs to be done very carefully by considering every possible aspect. Thanks for the good point.

I definitely agree that the Chyrtid fungi issue is a major problem for amphibian populations world-wide.

The majority of T&E introductions I've been watching lately are with freshwater mollusks (mainly unionid mussels). Extirpation are usually from harvesting or chemical spills/dumps, so habitat loss problems are not as common. Also the majority of mussels are hatchery raised in open systems, and are not as immuno-naive as many other captive reared critters.