CORVALLIS, Ore., May 2 (UPI) -- A U.S. study shows the world's amphibians, although surviving for hundreds of millions of years, are being hurt by the current rate of climate change.
Oregon State University researchers said the basic constraints of evolution and the inability of species to adapt quickly enough can explain most of the causes that are leading one species after another of amphibians into decline or extinction.
"There have always been threats, and (amphibians) have been some of the most adaptive and successful vertebrate animals on Earth," Professor Andrew Blaustein said. "They were around before the dinosaurs, have lived in periods with very different climates, and continued to thrive while many other species went extinct. But right now, they just can't keep up."
Of 5,743 known species of amphibians, 43 percent are in decline, 32 percent are threatened and 168 species are believed extinct. The researchers found the impact of change is far more pervasive on amphibians than many other vertebrates, such as birds or mammals.
The study is detailed in the current issue of the journal BioScience.
