Recently, a study found that agricultural expansion is putting frog populations at risk in the Western Ghats. It is part of the broader issue of agricultural expansion threatening biodiversity and causing habitat loss.
Impact of Agricultural Expansion:
Paddy fields and orchard expansion threaten frog population with paddy fields showing the lowest frog diversity and mango and cashew orchards housing the fewest frogs overall.
Decline of Rare Frog Species: Rare species, such as the CEPF Burrowing Frog (Minervarya cepfi) and the Goan Fejervarya (Minervarya gomantaki), were scarce in altered agricultural habitats.
Global and Local Amphibian Decline: About 40.7% (8,011 species) of amphibians worldwide are classified as threatened due to habitat destruction, pollution, climate change, and diseases like chytridiomycosis.
The Western Ghats, a biodiversity hotspot with 252 amphibian species (226 frogs), is facing habitat loss and declining frog populations.
Read more: Cyclone Chido
