World's rarest toads bred in captivity out of Panama for first time скачать в хорошем качестве

World's rarest toads bred in captivity out of Panama for first time

(16 Mar 2021) LEAD IN: One of the world's most critically endangered toads has been reared successfully in captivity outside of its natural habitat for the first time. Zoologists at the UK's Manchester Museum are breeding a back up population of Variable Harlequin Toads whose numbers are shrinking fast in their native Panama. STORY-LINE: It's a breeding success story. The Variable Harlequin Toad has largely vanished from its Central American habitats and now the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) says the amphibian is critically endangered. These Variable Harlequins you see here at the herpetology unit at Manchester Museum are the result of three years of special rearing and breeding. Out of six toad specimens the unit here now has around twenty including several young. Zoologist Dr. Andrew Gray is a herpetologist which means he specialises in reptiles and amphibians. He says: "From this particular population, nothing's been bred actually out of Panama, so we're lucky it took us a long time to collect a few, we brought them to Manchester and yes, we've got this real, fantastic back up population now just in case anything happens in Panama, we can send them back and if necessary they can breed them and repopulate the rivers there which would be great." The IUCN says this species appears to have undergone rapid, dramatic declines across its entire range. Their dwindling numbers aren't the result of simple habitat destruction, the problem goes far deeper. The toads, like other amphibians in the region, are being attacked by an infection called chytridiomycosis. It's caused by the chytrid fungus. Simply putting newly spawned toads or tadpoles back into their rainforest streams in Panama is not an option because the fungus is highly pervasive. According to Gray the fungus has become widespread because of a change in our climate. "So the fungus is around, it's been around for billions of years, they're nothing new really, but when you get the right conditions for them then they thrive. This particular fungus it likes cooler temperatures,  and it sounds a bit odd, but with global warming, the lowlands are getting warmer but the actual highlands are actually getting cooler because there is more cloud cover in these areas which is classed as cloud forest. So the sun can't penetrate through, things like amphibians are first to be affected because they're cold blooded they need the sun to warm them up but also to help them clear themselves of these funguses," he explains. Also frogs and toads reared in captivity can't be expected to blend seamlessly into a new habitat, they are vulnerable to predators and don't have their home ranges built by generations of breeding. Gray's curatorial assistant Matthew O'Donnell says it takes over a year to rear the young Harlequins to maturity. Breeding is done over weeks. The first challenge for the team here was recreating in minute detail the environment of the toad's natural habitat in Panama. O'Donnell says: "The humidity, the temperature, the lighting, very important to get the right UV light for them, all of these little variables that we control in the lab here at the vivarium help to maintain the conditions in exactly the right manner which replicates the Panamanian streams where these animals live in the wild." The diet of these animals was carefully contrived to deliver the best nutrition for peak physical fitness. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   Google+: https://plus.google.com/b/10201102858... Tumblr: https://aparchives.tumblr.com/​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...