Posted on 06/27/2005 9:34:33 AM PDT by GreenFreeper
Maybe we can think of a way that human stem cell research can help these poor critters. < /sarc >
Eco-ping
They are pretty neat, thought not as cool as sirens or congo eels :)
Could the deformities be the result of parasites attacking the eggs or larvae? When similar deformities started turning up in frogs, they started looking first at pesticides, then UV exposure, but it turned out to be parisitic worms who were at fault. But this didn't mean humans were not to blame since (if I remember correctly) the parasites were imported, not native, to the wetlands.
Bring back the saber-toothed tiger!
No need. They can regenerate limbs on their own.
The real answer is
libertarians use newts
and salamanders
in their rituals
and sometimes the damaged beasts
manage to escape . . .
Western Lesser Siren
didn't they finally report that the last bunch of deformed frogs had a parasite or virus?
Good thing you weren't in Japan. Imagine showing one of these off to an officer!:
Well parasites have been linked to deformities certainly, but that does not mean other factors do not also contribute to them and even cause them. Some of the better studies (Joseph Kiesecker circa 2002) showed that many pesticides cause amphibians to be more susceptable to parasites and epidemic disease.
But, but, but - don't they believe in evolution? Shouldn't they just let evolution run its course?
Do the pesticides directly attack amphibian's immune systems and/or affect their eggs in such away that they are rendered more vulnerable, or is it the result of the pesticide's effect on the water ecosystems themselves (algae blooms, killing off of the worm's natural predators, etc.) I'm guessing it's probably a combination of both.
A zoologist
named John Acorn one time was
catching lizards with
fly fishing gear out
in a desert and state police
arrested the guy!
Acorn spent the night
in lockup till they could call
his college next day!
IIRC it was a fungus.
But it's still Bush's fault.
Its believed that pesticides significantly amplify the deformation process by weakening the frogs' immune systems and making them less able to resist parasitic infections (ie cysts). Deformities rarely occur not in the presence of parasites (primarily nematodes)but deformities are anywhere from 4-5 X more likely in the presence of pesticides. I know atrazine is has been linked in the past.
Second, with the recent ruling on eminent domain, if government decided to "purchase" the area for development purposes, what concerns will they have about the thing?
Well, that's like saying with the massive number of anything (pollution, abortions, child molesters going free, murders etc.)going on, what's one more? I prefer to live in a world with things like hellbenders (the key word here being live). I'm not saying go through drastic measures to save the hellbenders, but if we can nudge them in the right direction I am all for it.
I'm suspicious of
all ecology "data,"
but if this chart's true --
could be mis-leading
in many ways! -- die-off rates
do look alarming.
And used engine oil will kill most skin breathers if you paint them with it.
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