
The threats to many of the world’s amphibian species and the reason why the hastening of the extinction of amphibian species through human activities should be avoided.

Answer to Problem 1CR
Some of the threats faced by amphibians include increased hunting for the skin, hoofs, nails, and flesh of these animals; polluting of water bodies; and deforestation. The amphibian population should be protected from becoming extinct as they are good biological indicators and the potential source of certain important medicines. In addition, they also play a major role in the food chain by controlling the insect population.
Explanation of Solution
Amphibians are a class of cold-blooded organisms that live in dual mode. They live part of their life cycle in water and part of their life on land. As they require water for fertilization, they cannot be completely considered as terrestrial animals. Amphibians include frogs, salamanders, toads, and many others.
Amphibians are presently under the threat of extinction due to human activities, such as increased hunting and poaching, water pollution, and deforestation. Animals are hunted and poached for various products, such skin, nails, teeth, hoofs and so forth. In response to these anthropogenic activities, the number of amphibians on the Earth has progressively declined.
Polluting water bodies with industrial chemicals, fertilizers, and pesticides that run off from agricultural lands would adversely affect the life of amphibians and other aquatic organisms. Animals face disturbance in their breeding and fertilization processes, and they also lose their habitats.
Deforestation is also a cause for the extinction of the amphibians as they lose their natural habitats, which makes it difficult for them to survive in new habitats and conditions, and the animals tend to die off in such a situation.
The extinction or a decrease in the majority of the amphibian population can result in destructive effects. This is due to several reasons. One of those is the considerable role of the amphibians in the food chain that works to balance various natural processes.
Several adult amphibians feed on insects for food. Frogs and toads are known to feed on the larva of mosquito that spreads diseases such as malaria, typhoid. Hence, without these amphibians, the population of certain insects would considerably increase and the occurrence of some insect-caused diseases would also increase drastically. Amphibians also keep the water bodies clean by eating off algae and other fungal population.
Moreover, amphibians act as important bioindicators of environmental changes, such as water and air pollution, habitat loss, ultraviolet radiation, and climatic fluctuations. The decline in the number of amphibians indicates the presence of a deteriorating condition in a particular area, which adversely affects the life of amphibians.
The compounds present in the secretions from the skin of some amphibians may be useful in many pharmaceutical products. A number of such compounds have been separated and used as antibiotics, painkillers, and also in the treatments of heart disease and burns. Therefore, if amphibians vanish, these potential medical benefits will also be wiped out with them.
Want to see more full solutions like this?
Chapter 4 Solutions
Living In The Environment
- Describe what the wind power as an energy source is. Describe 5 advantages of wind power as an energy source. Describe 5 disadvantages of wind power as an energy source. Discuss the future potential wind power as an energy source in the United States. Describe how you would convince the residents of the State of Connecticut to utilize more wind power as an energy sourcearrow_forwardHow is the biofuel ethanol produced?arrow_forwardDistinguish between reserves and resoircesarrow_forward
- Describe what kind of energy source oil ia. Describe 5 advantages of oil as an energy source. Describe 5 disadvantages of oil as energy source. Discuss the future potential of oil as energy source in the United States. Describe how you would convince the residents of the State of Connecticut to utilize more oil as an energy source.arrow_forwardWhat are negative environmental impacts of developing hydroelectric power?arrow_forwardList three negative environmental impacts of using biomass to provide energy.arrow_forward
- 1. Use the elevations in Figure 7.12 as a guide for drawing contour lines. The 100-foot contour line is provided for reference. Using a 20-foot contour interval, draw a contour line for each 20-foot change in elevation below and above 100 feet (e.g., 60 feet, 80 feet, 120 feet). You will have to estimate the elevations between the points. Label each contour line with its elevation. 2. Does the land shown on the topographic map you constructed generally slope downward toward the north or south? 3. Show the direction each stream is flowing by drawing arrows on the map.arrow_forwardDrawing a Topographic Profile Follow the steps illustrated in Figure 7.13 to draw a topographic profile. Use the profile graph in Figure 7.14 to construct a west-east profile along the line A-A' on the contour map you completed in Figure 7.12. Step 1. Our sample profile will be along line A-A. When constructing profiles on maps provided by your instructor, do not draw on the map. Step 2. Lay a piece of paper along the line of the profile you want to construct. In this example this is line A-A'. Mark each place where a contour line intersects the edge of the paper and note the elevation of the contour line. Step 3. On a separate piece of paper, draw a horizontal line slightly longer than your profile line, A-A'. Select a vertical scale for your profile that begins slightly. below the lowest elevation along the profile and extends slightly beyond the highest elevation. Mark this scale on either side of the horizontal line. Lay the marked paper edge (from Step 2) along the horizontal…arrow_forwardWhen contour lines cross streams or dry stream channels, they form a V that points upstream. Draw arrows next to three of the streams (shown in blue) to indicate the direction in which each is flowing.arrow_forward
- Applications and Investigations in Earth Science ...Earth ScienceISBN:9780134746241Author:Edward J. Tarbuck, Frederick K. Lutgens, Dennis G. TasaPublisher:PEARSONExercises for Weather & Climate (9th Edition)Earth ScienceISBN:9780134041360Author:Greg CarbonePublisher:PEARSONEnvironmental ScienceEarth ScienceISBN:9781260153125Author:William P Cunningham Prof., Mary Ann Cunningham ProfessorPublisher:McGraw-Hill Education
- Earth Science (15th Edition)Earth ScienceISBN:9780134543536Author:Edward J. Tarbuck, Frederick K. Lutgens, Dennis G. TasaPublisher:PEARSONEnvironmental Science (MindTap Course List)Earth ScienceISBN:9781337569613Author:G. Tyler Miller, Scott SpoolmanPublisher:Cengage LearningPhysical GeologyEarth ScienceISBN:9781259916823Author:Plummer, Charles C., CARLSON, Diane H., Hammersley, LisaPublisher:Mcgraw-hill Education,





