A frog of the genus Mantella (Mantella ebenaui or M. betsileo). The International Union for Conservation of Nature describes 16 species in this genus, all native only to Madagascar. The populations of 11 of those are listed as “declining,” with seven “endangered” or “critically endangered.” Habitat loss is cited as a primary factor. For some, however, another threat looms large: collection for the pet trade.
The situation is bleak the world over for frogs and their amphibian kin. Hundreds of millions of amphibians are plucked from the wild each year, to be traded as pets, eaten, sent to laboratories, or dissected in classrooms. See page 6 for more about the global onslaught on wild amphibians to feed an international trade that is cruel, wasteful, and not remotely sustainable.
Photo by Zach Baranowski