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December 2, 2008 4:29:05 AM CST

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frogs news stories

12 Stories

 Frog Pizza Storms London 

'The Hopper' has UK animal activists croaking mad

Sun (UK) Sun (UK) Oct 16, 08 9:00 PM CDT
(Newser) - London restaurant chain Eco has animal-rights activists hopping mad over its newest pizza, the Sun reports. Called “The Hopper,” the pie contains 8 frogs legs with capers and anchovies. British group Animal Aid is urging a boycott of Eco because harvesters of frogs’ legs usually cut them off while the amphibians are still alive. More »

More about:  Great Britain • food • fast food • frogs • pizza • amphibians

 Half of Europe's Frog
Species May Croak

Habitat loss, climate change, disease likely to wipe out amphibian species

Independent (UK) Independent (UK) Sep 26, 08 3:49 AM CDT
(Newser) - Half of all of Europe's amphibian species could be doomed to extinction within the next few decades, scientists warn. Habitat loss and climate change are already wiping out huge numbers of frogs, toads, newts and salamanders, the Independent reports. The situation has been exacerbated by a skin disease that has spread around the globe, devastating amphibian populations. More »

Even Toughest Toads Are Being Unmanned

Clues to sex-change mystery could explain amphibian decline

Independent (UK) Independent (UK) Jul 13, 08 10:40 AM CDT
(Newser) - The mystery of the hermaphrodite toads may be solved: Researchers have found that various chemicals used in farming are linked to sex changes in certain amphibian species, the Independent reports. In a population of cane toads, 40% of males had developed feminine coloring and ovaries, and an additional 20% had marked female characteristics. And the toads are not unique. More »

More about:  endangered species • farming • extinction • chemicals • frogs • sex change • amphibians • hermaphrodite

Biology Class Is No Cut-Up for US Kids

More pupils duck dissections by doing them virtually

Associated Press Associated Press Jun 1, 08 7:59 PM CDT
(Newser) - More biology students are ducking icky frog and fetal pig dissections by doing them on computers, the AP reports. Animal rights activists, thrilled that 14 states let kids skip dissections, are helping get the interactive programs to schools. One West Virginia group donated software to a high school that spends about $1,000 a year on frogs and $40 a pop for hogs. More »

More about:  computer • high school • animal rights • frogs • dissection • virtual imaging

Toad Venom Aphrodisiac
Kills NYC Man  

'There is no safe way to use' love drug that upsets heart rhythms

Associated Press Associated Press May 23, 08 9:25 PM CDT
(Newser) - New York City officials warned people today to avoid a toad venom-based aphrodisiac that recently killed a man, the AP reports. The illegal love drug, often sold as Jamaican Stone or Chinese Rock, is harmful whether ingested or applied to the skin. "There is no definitely safe way to use it,” one official said. Similar drugs have killed at least five New Yorkers since the early 1990s. More »

More about:  New York City • public health • accidental death • frogs • aphrodisiacs • toad venom

 Endangered
 Frogs Find
 Their Noah 

Amphibian Ark project aims to save 500 imperiled species

Washington Post Washington Post May 12, 08 3:33 PM CDT
(Newser) - Half of all frog species are in danger of extinction, and conservationists are taking a page from the Bible in working to preserve them. A program called Amphibian Ark has named 2008 the Year of the Frog, and is working with zoos to harbor endangered species, including some that have vanished from the wild. The goal is to breed enough to revitalize the populations, reports the Washington Post . More »

More about:  endangered species • zoo • extinction • frogs • amphibians • habitat

Frogs Offer Hope to Diabetics

'Shrinking' amphibian's skin holds key to new treatment alternatives

BBC BBC Mar 3, 08 1:15 PM CST
(Newser) - A frog that lives in the Amazon secretes a substance that stimulates insulin release in humans, offering new hope to diabetics, the BBC reports. The South American shrinking frog, which grows smaller as it ages, produces pseudin-2 through its slimy skin. A synthetic version of the peptide worked even better than the real thing in lab tests conducted by scientists in Northern Ireland and the UAE. More »

More about:  obesity • diabetes • frogs • type 2 diabetes • insulin • blood glucose

Zoos Leap Into Year of Frog

Activists bring attention to decline of amphibians

Florida Today Florida Today Feb 29, 08 9:23 AM CST
(Newser) - How could any zoo resist? Leap Day, in the Year of the Frog, is being celebrated by zoos and conservationists everywhere as the perfect time to draw attention to the plight of amphibians. "We want to get people talking about frogs and thinking about them," said one zookeeper. "But the main thing we want them to understand is that the frogs in their back yard are really, really important.”  More »

More about:  environment • endangered species • zoo • zookeeper • frogs • leap year

'Frog From Hell' Fossil Turns up in Madagascar

'Beelzebufo' munched on baby dinosaurs

Daily Telegraph (UK) Daily Telegraph (UK) Feb 19, 08 3:15 AM CST
(Newser) - Fossil hunters digging in Madagascar have discovered a 70 million-year-old, 10 pound ancestor of the horned frog. Over twice as large as its modern-day descendants, the  "slightly squashed beach-ball" shaped creature probably lunched on small lizards and baby dinosaurs, and has earned the charming nicknames "frog from hell" and "Beelzebufo," reports the Daily Telegraph . More »

More about:  animal • fossil • dinosaur • scientific discoveries • frogs • paleontology • continents • Cretaceous Period

Scientists Make It Easier Being Green

In breakthrough, antibiotic stops fungus that's killing amphibians

BBC BBC Oct 29, 07 4:10 PM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists have stumbled on a cure for the deadly fungus that is decimating the world's amphibian population. New Zealand researchers say an antibiotic used as an eye ointment for humans kills the fungus, which is blamed for the extinction of 40 species since 1980. Researchers dunked frogs in a solution of the cheap chemical and had near-miraculous results. More »

More about:  New Zealand • frogs • amphibians • fungus

Sprouting Eyes in Petri Dishes

Research that gave tadpoles a third eye could be boon for human sight

LiveScience LiveScience Oct 24, 07 8:04 PM CDT
(Newser) - A lab fluke that resulted in tadpoles growing third eyeballs could be a major boon for human sight, leading to replacement optic parts or even whole eyes grown in petri dishes. A recent research project accidentally happened upon a trigger for eye formation in frogs—a nitrogen-bearing molecule—that may be a missing link in stem cell science, LiveScience reports. More »

More about:  genes • stem cell research • frogs • eyes

Stranded by War, Forest Yields Treasures

Remote, unspoiled region of Congo conceals 6 new species

Reuters Reuters Aug 8, 07 6:53 PM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists have discovered six animal species in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, an area closed to scientists for nearly 50 years. The region is rich in biodiversity, Reuters reports, and beyond the bat, rodents, frogs, and shrews found on a brief trip this past winter, the Wildlife Conservation Society may also have discovered new plant species. More »

More about:  animal • wildlife • Democratic Republic of Congo • species • frogs • ecology • bats

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