Abstract
Abstract Agricultural intensification, starting during the Second World War, precipitated declines in all seven native species of amphibians in Britain. Problems in the United Kingdom (U.K.) therefore predated recognition of global amphibian declines and were due to relatively simple causes, notably habitat modification and destruction. Pesticides, acid rain, ultraviolet radiation, climate change, and disease have thus far proved relatively minor issues. Amphibian conservation started in the 1970s, initially with status surveys, but by the 1980s research into habitat requirements and proactive management was underway, particularly for the rare Bufo calamita (Natterjack Toad). The relatively widespread Triturus cristatus (Great Crested Newt) was given the same legal protection as B. calamita in 1981 due largely to declines elsewhere in Europe. This protection has become problematic for conservationists on account of the many sites with this newt that regularly come under threat from development. Additional...
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