Southern Gulf Pipefish - courtesy Graham Short

What has the Seadragon Foundation Inc. got to do with the amphibian conservation and the Amphibian Ark?

What have marine conservationists got to do with amphibian conservation? For one see the letter below by Jean-Michel Cousteau the son of ocean explorer Jacquas Cousteau and founder of the Oceans Future Society.

For the SFI, well first of all, amphibians are facing the greatest extinction crisis of any group of backboned animals.

The second group is freshwater fish, and the way things are going shortly inshore fish like the Leafy Seadragon. As amphibians spend part of their life in water and are closely related to fish there is going to be a lot to learn form the successes, and failures, of the Amphibian Ark.

Secondly, I am going to work as research officer for the amphibian ark, so will be right in the action to learn to help the Leafy Seadragon, and other inshore marine and freshwater fish. Why freshwater fish? The well being of inshore waters and freshwaters are intertwined. Bad freshwater management equals bad coastal management. Please contribute to the Amphibian Ark, and later we may well be asking these guys to send out letters asking for contributions to the SFI conservation effort.

A Surinam toad Pipa pipa filmed from below. This aquatic species carries its eggs attached to the males back.

OPEN LETTER BY JEAN-MICHEL COUSTEAU

Thank you for recently joining thousands around the world who are petitioning our governments to take actions to save amphibians. I don't need to tell you that frogs, salamanders, and other amphibians are facing the most significant mass extinction since the dinosaurs.

I'm Jean-Michel Cousteau, and I am writing to you on behalf of Amphibian Ark, the global nonprofit organization that is coordinating the emergency rescue of the most threatened amphibian species.

I am joining Sir David Attenborough, Jeff Corwin, and thousands of zoos, aquaria, and conservation organizations to support Amphibian Ark in rallying our planet to avert this mass extinction.

I write this to you on the eve of Feb. 29, 2008, which is called Leap Day in the United States and, in this special "Year of the Frog," is being call the International Day of the Frog.

Our collective success will come down to the money that is raised – from companies, and governments, and individuals like you and me. I am heartened at hearing stories of grade school children asking their birthday party guests to make donations to Amphibian Ark in lieu of a gift; and a British Isles couple that asked for donations to Amphibian Ark instead of wedding presents.

This indeed is a cause where small donations can add up to the saving of an endangered species. The physical plan for rescuing the most critically threatened amphibians involves converting trailer-sized containers into breeding centers, and training people to oversee the species' return to healthy populations. The cost of saving an entire species under this plan is $100,000 – compared to other wildlife rescue, this is an amazingly efficient plan.

You are among the thousands who are the first to "jump in" to the amphibian issue. We are counting on you to multiply this number.

Here's what I am asking you to consider:

• Forward this to 10 people you respect and will thoughtfully consider joining us on what may be considered, years from now, the greatest wildlife "save" in history. Ask them to visit www.amphibianark.org, learn more about the pending crisis -- and they can sign the petition on that Web site.

• Make a donation, large or small, to Amphibian Ark through its Web site (www.amphibianark.org). Or mail a check to the address at the bottom of this article.

Frogs are a crucial part of the ecosystem, and they act as indicators to the environment's health. These remarkable creatures may hold the key to unlocking diseases such as depression, stroke, seizures, Alzheimer's and cancer. It is imperative that we preserve these creatures for ourselves and future generations.

Undescribed species - courtesy David Muirhead

Thank you for being a part of the solution. Through an active dialogue we can generate awareness and education about this issue.

Visit www.amphibianark.org for donation and sponsorship information. Sincerely,

Jean-Michel Cousteau