Volumes of data illustrate the severity of the crisis affecting amphibians, where > 32% of amphibians worldwide are threatened with declining populations. Although there have been isolated victories, the current approach to the issue is unsuccessful. We suggest that a radically different approach, something akin to human emergency response management (i.e. the Incident Command System), is one alternative to addressing the inertia and lack of cohesion in responding to amphibian issues. We acknowledge existing efforts and the useful research that has been conducted, but we suggest that a change is warranted and that the identification of a new amphibian chytrid provides the impetus for such a change. Our goal is to recognize that without a centralized effort we (collectively) are likely to fail in responding to this challenge.

The Endangered snow leopard Panthera uncia is a flagship species of mountainous central Asia, and a conservation concern. China has the largest extent of potential snow leopard habitat and is thus crucial for snow leopard conservation. There are many challenges to snow leopard conservation in China, however, and there is still little information on the species for many geographical locations, including the Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang province, which are important because they potentially connect snow leopard populations in Krygyzstan and Kazakhstan with those in Mongolia. We used camera traps in four areas across eastern, central and western Tianshan, with a total survey effort of 3,216 camera-trapping days. We confirmed the presence of snow leopards and an abundance of potential snow leopard prey, including the Siberian ibex Capra sibirica, in all areas. We found 2–3 individual adult snow leopards at each site, with relatively limited survey effort, and more study is needed to fully investigate the importance of the Tianshan Mountains for the species. Establishing more protected areas is essential for snow leopard conservation, and we have used data from this study to apply for protected area status for several areas.

The so-called amphibian crisis is mostly managed by IUCN through the Species Survival Commission Amphibian Specialist Group in collaboration with the Amphibian Survival Alliance, and its management is considered to be the most important implementation of the Amphibian Conservation Action Plan (Gascon et al., 2007). In the Amphibian Conservation Action Plan  meeting held in 2005 several actions were planned and the investment needed for amphibian conservation was estimated. More than a decade later, however, much remains to be done, especially in response to heterogeneous emergencies that could cause amphibian extinctions. In this context Muths & Fisher (2015) suggest an alternative approach.

Declining availability of prey is potentially a major factor limiting snow leopard Panthera uncia populations in Tajikistan and neighbouring states. Conservation initiatives to develop community-based trophy hunting programmes for ibex Capra sibirica and argali Ovis ammon polii aim to provide financial incentives for communities to limit poaching of wild ungulates. Such programmes could help to reverse local declines in ibex and argali populations, and consequently snow leopard populations, while simultaneously improving the economic status of local people. However, in practice the desired effect may not materialize. To investigate the premise, we estimated the population density of the snow leopard, using a spatial capture–recapture model based on camera trapping in two study areas (each c. 1,000 km2) in the Tajik Pamirs: a well-managed trophy hunting concession and an otherwise similar area where grazing and poaching are unmanaged. We used distance-truncated counts to assess relative densities of wild and domestic ungulates between sites, and faecal analyses to compare the dietary habits of snow leopards. Our data were limited in scope but suggested that the density of snow leopards and the relative density of wild and domestic ungulates may have been greater in the hunting concession, where wild ungulates accounted for a greater proportion of prey items. Our results provide preliminary evidence that trophy hunting of ungulates may be a viable tool for achieving snow leopard conservation goals; however, we conclude that further investigation is necessary to adequately address the question.

Assessments of biodiversity status are needed to track trends, and the IUCN Red List has become the accepted global standard for documenting the extinction risk of species. Obtaining robust data on population size is an essential component of any assessment of a species’ status, including assessments for the IUCN Red List. Obtaining such estimates is complicated by methodological and logistical issues, which are more pronounced in the case of cryptic species, such as the snow leopard Panthera uncia. Estimates of the total population size of this species have, to date, been based on little more than guesstimates, but a comprehensive summary of recent field research indicates that the conservation status of the snow leopard may be less dire than previously thought. A revised categorization, from Endangered to Vulnerable, on the IUCN Red List was proposed but met some opposition, as did a recent, similar recategorization of the giant panda Ailuropoda melanoleuca. Possible factors motivating such attitudes are discussed. Downlisting on the IUCN Red List indicates that the species concerned is further from extinction, and is always to be welcomed, whether resulting from successful conservation intervention or improved knowledge of status and trends. Celebrating success is important to reinforce the message that conservation works, and to incentivize donors.

We appreciate the comments from Andreone (2016) regarding our proposed alternative strategy for addressing the amphibian crisis. Andreone recognizes the utility of an Incident Command System approach but doubts the feasibility of implementation at an international level. We stated in our original article, however, that ‘the feasibility of our suggestion is debatable, but our point is that radically different approaches are necessary to effectively manage the largest extinction event in modern history’ (Muths & Fisher, 2015). There are examples of where such top-down strategies are being applied; e.g. for the brown tree snake Boiga irregularis (Stanford & Rodda, 2007), and biosecurity planning for Micronesia and Hawaii (NAVFAC Pacific, 2016). Another example is presented by Andreone. In Madagascar a community-wide conservation plan has been developed complete with prioritization of specific actions (Andreone, 2016). As with any top-down strategy, challenges will surface, especially when making decisions that affect economics. We note this caveat in our article, and Andreone points out such issues in Madagascar, where there are mismatches in priorities between biodiversity conservation and civil needs. Our suggestion is that a new paradigm needs to be considered given the gravity of amphibian decline, and one option may be to take a global approach focusing on specific, major threats. Application of an Incident Command System would not necessitate competition with, or emasculation of, local conservation priorities or actions.

The Blue Mountains water skink Eulamprus leuraensis is an Endangered swamp specialist known from < 60 sites and restricted to the rare, threatened and fragmented habitat of Temperate Highland Peat Swamps on Sandstone. Understanding the species’ ecology, notably its vulnerability to threatening processes such as hydrological disturbance, is essential if we are to retain viable populations of this Endangered reptile. We examined the impact of anthropogenic disturbance (longwall mining practices, development (industrial, urban, infrastructural) and damage by recreational vehicles) on this species, other herpetofauna and the swamp by surveying six paired undisturbed and disturbed sites in south-eastern Australia. The abundance of E. leuraensis was severely affected by disturbance. The species was absent from disturbed swamps, where it was replaced by its congener E. heatwolei and other woodland reptile species. Disturbance was associated with a halving of soil moisture content and a loss of surface water; the dense, live understorey was replaced by a sparser, drier habitat with dead vegetation, logs, rocks and bare ground. In effect, disturbance eliminated the distinctive features of the swamp habitat, transforming it into an area that resembled the surrounding habitat in terms of fauna, flora and physical characteristics. Our surveys suggest that hydrological disturbance (groundwater loss or alterations in surface water chemistry) extirpates E. leuraensis. This species' dependence on groundwater renders it sensitive to habitat degradation through hydrological disturbance. The conservation message for management authorities is clear: to protect the skink, protect the habitat.

North-central Africa (i.e. Cameroon, the Central African Republic and Chad) once held important populations of large mammals, including the hippopotamus Hippopotamus amphibius. Exports of hippopotamus trophies from Cameroon were suspended in 2012 but the species’ status and population trends remain poorly known. Using the same methodology as in 2000 and 2008, we counted hippopotamuses in Faro National Park and bordering hunting zones in 2014. We counted 685 individuals along 97 km of river, compared with 647 and 525 in 2000 and 2008, respectively. The stability of this population contrasts with the declines in populations of large mammals across north-central Africa. We attribute this conservation success to private efforts (i.e. safari hunting) compensating for a decline in state protection. However, the situation remains fragile, as highlighted by an influx of transhumant cattle and gold diggers. We recommend increasing public–private conservation efforts, including incentives for the safari hunting industry, which is also under pressure.

Guinea-Bissau is host to the westernmost subpopulation of the common hippopotamus Hippopotamus amphibius, which is one of only two known populations inhabiting coastal waters. The presence of hippopotamuses causes conflict with rice farmers as a result of crop damage and the absence of effective measures to protect crops. To develop an effective method for protecting rice fields, we studied the patterns of access to flooded and rain-fed rice fields by hippopotamuses and assessed the effect of the installation of electric fences. Hippopotamuses were detected in 54% of the flooded fields (n = 100) and in 31.9% of the rain-fed fields (n = 91). They were detected more frequently in fields on offshore islands than on the mainland, in unfenced than in fenced fields, and in fields closer to running water. Hippopotamuses entered fenced flooded fields less frequently than unfenced, and were detected most frequently at the end of the rainy season and the start of the dry season, and in the period of vegetative stem growth. Electric fences were an effective deterrent and facilitated increased rice production. The maintenance and cost of the electric fencing were acceptable to farmers, and therefore the use of such fencing is recommended to resolve the conflict between hippopotamuses and farmers in Guinea-Bissau and in other areas with similar conditions.

Biodiversity offsetting involves the balancing of biodiversity loss in one place (and at one time) by an equivalent biodiversity gain elsewhere (an outcome referred to as No Net Loss). The conservation science literature has chiefly addressed the extent to which biodiversity offsets can serve as a conservation tool, focusing on the technical challenges of its implementation. However, offsetting has more profound implications than this technical approach suggests. In this paper we introduce the concept of policy frames, and use it to identify four ways in which non-human nature and its conservation are reframed by offsetting. Firstly, offsetting reframes nature in terms of isolated biodiversity units that can be simply defined, measured and exchanged across time and space to achieve equivalence between ecological losses and gains. Secondly, it reframes biodiversity as lacking locational specificity, ignoring broader dimensions of place and deepening a nature–culture and nature–society divide. Thirdly, it reframes conservation as an exchange of credits implying that the value of non-human nature can be set by price. Fourthly, it ties conservation to land development and economic growth, foreshadowing and bypassing an oppositional position. We conclude that by presenting offsetting as a technical issue, the problem of biodiversity loss due to development is depoliticized. As a result the possibility of opposing and challenging environmental destruction is foreclosed, and a dystopian future of continued biodiversity loss is presented as the only alternative.

The tropical island nation of Sri Lanka is a biodiversity hotspot with a high diversity and endemism of amphibians. The endemic, stream-dwelling Kandian torrent toad Adenomus kandianus is Critically Endangered and was considered to be extinct until its rediscovery in 2012. The species is now known from two localities in tropical montane forests. We conducted a 4-year study using transect surveys and opportunistic excursions to assess habitat associations, demographics and abundance of A. kandianus in and around Pidurutalagala Conservation Forest. We recorded a mean of 44.25 post-metamorphs per year, with a density of < 1 individual per 100 m2, with occurrence within a narrow extent (c. 0.005 km2) of the stream channel. Behaviour and microhabitat selection varied depending on sex and stage of maturity. The species preferred moderately sized montane streams with rocky substrates and woody debris, colder temperatures, and closed-canopy, intact riparian forests. We noted size-based reversed sexual dimorphism and a strong ontogenetic relationship between snout–vent length and body weight. Anthropogenic activities such as intensive crop farming deterred the species; proximity to croplands had a negative influence on abundance. We recommend re-delineation of the boundary of Pidurutalagala Conservation Forest to incorporate the toad's habitat into the core of the reserve and thus limit the impacts of human activities. Conservation and management actions such as ex-situ breeding, population monitoring, and restoration of degraded habitats could also contribute towards the persistence of this toad. Our findings provide useful insights into ecological research on and conservation of range-restricted aquatic amphibians.