In July 2006, Colombian scientists discovered two new species of endemic poison dart frog in a tiny area of rainforest in Colombia’s Central Mountain Range. The frogs, subsequently named Swainson’s poison frog (Ranitomeya doriswainsonae) and the little golden dart frog (Ranitomeya tolimense) were imminently threatened by the advance of coffee and avocado plantations, which had erased all but 20% of the area’s original forest cover. The scientists from the Bogotá-based conservation group ProAves persuaded area farmers to stop cutting the forest and sell their land to the group. Then they appealed urgently to the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and the organization Conservation International for scientific and financial help. On Dec. 23, 2008, as a result of those efforts, the world’s first reserve dedicated exclusively... [Log in to read more]
