Europe's amphibians at risk

British toads and newts are among those under threat. Viruses are already wiping out many hundreds of amphibians a year, and conservationists fear for the future of species like this natterjack toad Photograph: ohn Cancalosi/Rex Features

In Britain, infections caused by a family of pathogens called ranaviruses, which emerged in the 1980s, are causing widespread deaths among some of the most common amphibians, such as the common frog Photograph: George McCarthy/Corbis

The crested newt is also at risk. One in three of the world's amphibians are already on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's red list of endangered species, with some estimates suggesting 150 species have already become extinct since the 1980s Photograph: John Cancalosi/Rex Features

The majority of the most threatened species live in Mediterranean regions, which are expected to become warmer and drier. Island species, such as this Mallorcan midwife toad, are especially at risk because they are unable to move to cooler climates Photograph: Duncan Usher/Getty

The Sardinian painted frog. "A lot of European amphibians, especially those found in the Mediterranean, cannot move to find more suitable habitats, because they are surrounded by sea water, which they can't tolerate, or they are blocked off by mountain ranges," said Trent Garner, research scientist at the Zoological Society of London Photograph: Zoological Society of London/PR

The Sardinian brook newt is considered to be especially at risk from climate change. Conservationists are urging zoos to set up captive breeding programmes for the most threatened amphibians Photograph: Zoological Society of London/PR

The agile frog is not threatened in most of southern Europe, but in central Europe its small and scattered populations are under threat from climate change, disease and urbanisation Photograph: Konrad Wothe/Getty