As crocus’s and daffodil’s open their buds to signal spring, the dawn chorus becomes louder and more raucous, and the warmth of the approaching season starts to finally thaw the cold wintered land it is hard not to feel exhilarated. As the march hares start to kick, as birds prepare to build their nests, a sure way to signal spring is the arrival of a throng of heaving, croaking frogs as they initiate spawning. As children there were many spring days spent collecting frogspawn, catching tadpoles and watching them grow, but the current state of Earth’s ever changing climate and man’s destructive force across the surface may mean that generations to come never get the chance to build these fond memories.

The United Kingdom’s common frog (Rana temporaria), along with its six endemic amphibian cousins, are under threat. As development spreads across the surface like a suffocating blanket, laying down concrete, filling in ponds, tearing through ditches, these small, extraordinary creatures face their biggest threat yet, total extinction. An increased frog population in my local pond heartened me slightly this year, there were more spawning pairs than ever before and on the surface all looked well. However, peep below the surface and read between the lines and it is in fact a worrying scenario.

Frogs, as many amphibians do, return to their home pond to spawn, often travelling huge relative distances to return back to their birth place. In the case in point the local watering hole had not been established for long, and gaining maturity at three years old meant that many of these new individuals were not natives of the pond. Worryingly this means that the new residents have probably lost their home ponds due to development, have been dispersed from their habitats and are seeking refuge in what could become an over populated area. It seems fine that at least they found this new spot but long term effects lead to isolated habitats with overcrowding often leading to disease and inbreeding. It is not good for a species, any species.

Particularly sensitive to pollution and disease the Common Frog is also susceptible to the changing environment. As acid rain, surface run off and water pollution add to changing aquatic environments so to is the frog’s ecology. As Red-Leg, a frog killing disease which has now spread across the entirety of Britain, attacks this already vulnerable species it is an obvious worry as how long the Common Frog will actually be common for.

Obvious steps in preserving the species are to provide long lasting water spots for the population. By adding ponds, pools, basins of water in our gardens we can ensure that the frog population, and its amphibian counterparts, have aquatic corridors through which they can sustain a mixing community with the freedom to travel back and forth. They may not have the high profiles of Siberian Tigers or Mountain Gorilla’s or Panda’s but they are just as important. The worlds’ declining amphibian population indicates ominous forebodings for the Earth’s climate, for its environmental safety. With a little thought and effort the Common Frogs’ place in Britain can be preserved, our children can continue to watch this unique species grow and evolve from tadpoles to adults, and the joy of the spring spawn can be savoured for continuing days to come.