Dr. Kerry Krieger may have only moved to Santa Cruz last April, but he’s already had a major impact on the community. He is a man with a mission, and his mission is to save the endangered amphibians of the world, starting with the frogs. Krieger will be speaking tonight at the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum on behalf of his group, aptly named Save the Frogs.
Founded in 2008, Save the Frogs is a small group—Krieger is also its only employee—but it is slowly gathering momentum. He has spoken at UCSC and Cabrillo College, as well as many elementary and high schools across the area. Most of all, he has promoted April 30 as Save the Frogs Day, officially recognized by Santa Cruz. He has even managed to raise $130,000, a nice sum considering that the group’s funding at the time of its founding was just $3,000 of his own money.
Krieger explains that he chose Santa Cruz as the home for his efforts because the group “needed a permanent location and because California has 16 threatened amphibian species.” Three of those species live in Santa Cruz County, including the California red-legged frog. They are threatened by a variety of factors, including habitat loss, disease, climate change, and the intrusion of non-native species. He’ll be talking about all that tonight at the Arboterum, and concluding the evening with a sampling of frog calls. Grrbt!
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/localnews/ci_16212957
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