CHICAGO – When it comes to the environment, frogs are the canaries in the coalmine. Because their thin skin is permeable to water and grunge, frogs and other amphibians serve as excellent bioindicators. The presence of abundant, healthy amphibians indicates good quality aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Over the past several years, however, the number of amphibians has been declining. Meanwhile the number and severity of malformed frogs has been increasing dramatically. This is a worldwide problem, but the Upper Midwest has been designated as one of two U.S. hotspots for amphibian malformation.
"In death and disfigurement, frogs are teaching us a lesson about how to conduct ourselves as human beings and members of society," says Michael Lannoo, PhD, winner of this year’s Parker/Gentry Award. "It would be foolish to ignore or dismiss the message about environmental perturbation that malformed amphibians are sending."
For his success studying amphibians and educating the public about the importance of amphibian well-being to human health, Dr. Lannoo will receive the Parker/Gentry Award from The Field Museum at a private ceremony on Sept. 12, 2001. Established in 1996 by an anonymous donor, the award honors an outstanding conservation biologist who has had a significant impact on preserving the world’s natural heritage, and whose actions and approach can serve as a model to others.
Dr. Lannoo’s environmental work covers many fronts: basic research, author, university professor, featured Discovery.com expert, tireless advocate for biodiversity, and the conscience of conservation biology.
In 1990, the World Conservation Union established the Declining Amphibian Populations Task Force to determine the causes of declines in amphibians and to halt or reverse the declines. While head of DAPTF’s Central Division, Dr. Lannoo edited the book Status and Conservation of Midwestern Amphibians (1998), which now serves as the foundation for amphibian conservation in the Midwest.
From there, Dr. Lannoo became DAPTF’s U.S. coordinator, overseeing the work of 1,500 scientists and spearheading the upcoming publication of Status and Conservation of U.S. Amphibians. He and his colleagues have documented how several factors contribute to the declining number of individual amphibians and amphibian species. These factors include habitat destruction and alteration, ultraviolet-B radiation, pesticides, acidification, global warming, diseases, and introduced species.
The related problem of increased incidence and severity of malformed amphibians is even more controversial. "While three leading causes have been proposed for malformation – UV-B radiation, parasite infestation, and xenobiotic chemicals – only xenobiotic chemicals, including pesticides and perhaps fertilizers, can explain the full suite of observed malformations," Dr. Lannoo says.
Dr. Lannoo is full professor with joint appointments at the Muncie Center for Medical Education at Indiana University School of Medicine, and the Department of Physiology and Health Sciences at Ball State University. He also enjoys a summer appointment at the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory, a biological field station run jointly by Iowa State University, the University of Iowa, and the University of Northern Iowa. Dr. Lannoo wrote Okoboji Wetlands: A Lesson in Natural History (1996) and is featured in William Souder’s A Plague of Frogs (2000). In addition, he has tropical and polar field experience as a comparative neurobiologist.
The Parker/Gentry Award is presented annually by The Founders’ Council of The Field Museum. For more information about the award, Dr. Lannoo, and past winners, visit www.fieldmuseum.org/parkergentry/.
Public Lecture at Field Museum
Michael Lannoo, PhD, will address "Amphibian Conservation in the 21st Century" on Tuesday, Sept. 11, at 6:30 p.m. He will discuss how environmental degradation – as evidenced by amphibian degradation –impacts human health. The cost is $12 for general admission; $10 for students and educators; and $8 for members of The Field Museum.
For more information about the lecture, call (312) 665-7400.