Reference no: EM132830277
Amphibians
Click on the four species listed under "Bufonidae (Toads)"
1) Looking at the maps at the bottom of the text, which two species are found in north Florida?
2) What color is the American Toad?
3) Which toads have a light stripe down the middle?
4) What is unusual about oak toads (Bufo quercius )?
5) Describe the call of the Southern toad:
Click on the Eastern Spadefoot Toad
6) What is the "spade" used for?
7) What is the difference in the pupils of the true toads compared to spadefoot toads?
Click on the Eastern Narrowmouth Toad
8) List an interesting fact about this toad:
Look under "Hylidae (Treefrogs)"
9) Pick two species that are found in north Florida and fill in the information below:
Scientific name:
Common name:
Describe what it's call sounds like:
Scientific name:
Common name:
Describe what it's call sounds like:
B. Web site name: Science Daily
Read "Why poison frogs don't poison themselves"
10) Which toxin derived from frogs is the subject of this study?
11) How many amino acids, out of 2,500, were mutated in the receptor of the frog?
12) Why are medical researchers interested in this toxin?
13) What is a "receptor"?
14) What is this same receptor involved in with humans?
15) In which country are these poison frogs found?
16) What other neurotoxin from frogs was identified in January 2016?
C. Web site name: Science News
Read "Dying frogs a sign of biodiversity crisis"
17) How long have amphibians been around?
18) How many mass extinctions have there been before now?
19) Roughly what percentage of the amphibian species that inhabit the peaks of the Sierra Nevada are threatened with extinction? ___________ %
20) Which two species of frogs had recent population declines of 95 to 98%?
21) What disease of amphibians is caused by a pathogenic fungus?
22) Why did the introduction of rainbow trout cause declines of frogs in the western US?
23) What are two other major killers of frogs around the world?
24) Should you care about the decline in amphibians? Explain.
D. Web site name: Scientific American
Read "Amphibians at Risk".
25) How many amphibian species inhabit the world?
26) What parts of the US have the most species at risk?
27) What could be one cause of amphibian declines and extinctions in near-pristine environments?
28) What other culprits could cause declines?
29) How many species of amphibian are presumed or possibly extinct in the US?
30) What is suspected of causing declines in California's central valley?
31) Which fish eat amphibian eggs and adults?
E. Web site name: Science Daily
Read "Prehistoric super salamander"
32) In which country was this fossil found?
33) What did this animal eat?
34) What is the scientific name (genus and species) for this fossil?
35) In which four parts of the world have fossils from this group of amphibians been found?
36) What is the most likely cause of death for "several hundred" of these animals?
37) What does the head of this animal look like?
F. Web site name : BBC news
Read "Frog spawn provides cancer clue"
38) What frog was used in this cancer research?
39) Why are the eggs of this frog particularly useful?
40) When does cancer happen?
41) What does geminin do?
42) Why could losing geminin be a crucial stage in the development of cancer?
43) What type of drugs would doctors like to design?