In the past century, the average global surface temperature has increased by 0.7 degrees Celsius (IPCC 2007). This warming has occurred at a rate unprecedented in recent history and is expected to cause considerable changes to regional temperature and precipitation patterns (IPCC 2007). Because climate plays an important role in the lives of amphibians, changes in regional climate are particular cause for concern. Amphibians often rely on rainfall to maintain their moisture balance and to provide aquatic habitats such as wetlands or streams in which their larvae can develop. Some species declines have recently been correlated to regional climatic factors (Daszak et al. 2005). And, although global atmospheric warming isn't necessarily responsible for all regional climate changes, it has been suggested to play a strong role in climate change in the tropics where several amphibian species are declining rapidly (Whitfield et al. 2007). Climatic change has also been suggested to increase the spread and severity of the emerging chytrid fungus that causes the amphibian disease chytridiomycosis which is killing many amphibians in the tropics and across the globe (Pounds and Crump 1994; Pounds et al. 2006).

Regional climate changes affect in amphibians in other ways too. Most pond-breeding amphibians undergo yearly reproductive migrations that are correlated with seasonal changes in temperature and rainfall (summarized in Carey and Alexander 2003). A growing number of studies have shown that spring-breeding frogs and salamanders reproduce earlier in recent warm years than they have in many past years (Beebee 1995; Gibbs and Briesch 2001). These changes in breeding phenology have unknown consequences for the persistence of amphibian populations and the composition of amphibian communities. Use the resource viewer below to learn more about amphibian declines and climatic change.