Amphibians are the world's most threatened vertebrate group. Understanding their welfare needs and the causes of decline reveals important conservation priorities.
Amphibian welfare science is in its infancy, but the biological evidence for amphibian sentience is sufficient to warrant welfare consideration. Frogs and toads show nociceptive responses to tissue damage and have opioid receptors suggesting pain modulation systems. At population level, the welfare implications of chytrid disease are enormous: infected amphibians suffer from disrupted skin function (which they use for respiration and osmoregulation) causing a slow physiological deterioration. Road casualties during migration - where frogs cross roads in large numbers on wet spring nights - cause mass acute mortality events. Garden ponds, amphibian tunnels under roads, and habitat restoration are among the most direct welfare interventions available.