The fact that humans affect planet earth is non-debatable. It’s obvious that we have an effect on our habitat. No problem, it’s our planet – if we destroy it – our loss, who care? It was our fault and nobody gets hurt except the bad guy (us!) Right? Wrong. The problem with this kind of “it doesn’t matter anyway” mindset is that thousands of God’s innocent creatures can be affected and we are 100% to blame. An example of this would be rain-forest creatures. Greedy corporations are tearing down rainforests for lumber that they can harvest cheaply and then sell for a high price. Thousands of species are being destroyed by the same machete knives and bulldozers used to plow through the forests to kill the trees. Some of those species are frogs – not only are they harmed by various machines used to clear the jungle spaces, but they are also affected by the fact that their habitat is destroyed and they have no place to go. If you destroy an animal’s habitat it is like dropping an atomic bomb on a human city – it is almost impossible for the human city to recover. Humans need to be more conscious of their actions and how they affect the various biomes on the planet. Humans are slowly killing frogs by result of pollution, global warming and greed.
Frogs possess a rather interesting type of skin. Instead of drinking water, they absorb most of the moisture they need through their skin. Not only that, but their skin also helps them breathe! Since frogs can only get oxygen through their skin when it’s wet, it’s important for them to stay slimy and cool. Frogs secrete a mucus to help them stay wet but even so it’s important for them to stay near water. Because frogs take in oxygen and water through their skin, other things are bound to get in. Things like chemicals or fertilizers that could potentially harm or even kill the frog! An article from Science Daily states “High levels of nutrients used in farming and ranching activities fuel parasite infections that have caused highly publicized frog deformities in ponds and lakes across North America. “ A study led by the University of Colorado shows that certain pollutants that occur in our environment due to farming encourage parasite growths, thus ramping up infections in the frog population. The infections cause the frogs to grow abnormalities and deformities, putting a damper on their fight for survival. Greedy corporate agriculture firms are using un-safe fertilization formulas because they can spread them cheaply and sell their quick-growing vegetables for a large profit. However, these un-safe fertilizers are endangering the species by causing abnormalities. A study by a Yale professor raised a troubling concern - 21% of male frogs are hermaphrodites! This means that there are immature eggs growing in their testes and are neither male nor female. Hermaphrodites cannot reproduce which means that the species will not be able to survive. The professor linked the high level of Hermaphrodites with the also high level of herbicides used in the area. Human pollutants that are environmentally unsafe are causing a high level or problems for frogs. Humans are the greatest enemy to the frog.
Another human activity – excess energy use is also fueling the frog’s extinction. Global warming caused by Co2 in the atmosphere is drying up lakes and ponds. Because a frog’s skin must stay wet, this destroys the frog’s habitat. Furthermore, one may recall from their high school biology class that frogs must lay their eggs in water. Without water, eggs cannot be laid and new frogs cannot be born. Also, without water, frogs cannot stay cool and they can become feverish and die. All together – Global Warming is not helping frogs! Now, some people might argue that climate change occurs naturally and animals can undergo microevolution in order to cope. This is true – but we aren’t talking about a natural climate change. It is at least partially if not mostly caused by the human race and this accelerated climate change is coming on too fast even for the most adaptive species of amphibians. Frogs are incredibly sensitive to environmental changes. The rapid disappearance of many species of frogs acts as a sort of “Canary in a Coalmine.” It is a sort of clue to scientist that something is very, very wrong with our planet. In fact, global warming is SO harmful that every day a new species of frogs disappear from the planet. If this is only the beginning of Global Warming and frogs are dying left and right, what will happen to the human race? The time to take action is now. Not only is it our responsibility to the frogs and the planet but also to ourselves and our children. We have to solve this problem before it gets out of control.
Many of the problems in our world stem from greed. Starvation, homelessness, and STDS around the world could have been solved if it wasn’t for people acting only on selfish interests. The deaths of frogs is also effected by human greed. Living in a capitalistic system where the main goal is to make money, corporations go to great lengths to use the cheapest products to get the jobs done and often replace natural substances with chemicals in order to make money. The effects of their greed is hurting frogs around the globe. Here’s where the cincher comes in – there is nothing we can do to MAKE people not be greedy. People are sinful and will display greedy qualities until the end of time. How can we help? Government grants? Absolutely not. That is completely unfair – you can’t except a remnant to pay for the sins of the mass. Government regulation? Forget it. We don’t need more limitations, not even if it pertains to saving our planet. Regulation can become corrupted and only will make the problem worse. Government anything? Nope. If it involves power, then forget it. Corruption will take over. So what’s the solution? Education is the only way to fix the problem. Conscious of people still exist and it’s best to take advantage of them by presenting the moral dilemma of greed. When it comes to solving the planet, humans are the ones for the jobs. But you can’t force people to do things – you have to allow them to make the choice on their own. To do so, we offer non-profit education to people and explain the dilemma at hand. No political slogans, no government loans, just mouth to mouth, word-for-word people helping people. We can solve the frog extinction problem if we work together.
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