Amphibians are among the most susceptible groups to human activities and habitat loss, with over a hundred species either gone extinct or on the verge of extinction. And all this is only in the last 500 years. Plenty of amphibian species have lived and died in the prehistoric periods as well.

List of Recently Extinct Amphibians

Frogs and Toads

Newts and Salamanders

• Yunnan Lake Newt (Cynops wolterstorffi)
• Ainsworth’s Salamander (Plethodon ainsworthi)
• Jalpa False Brook Salamander (Pseudoeurycea exspectata)

List of Amphibians That Are Possibly Extinct

Typically, a species is considered extinct when there is no recorded sighting of even a single individual for at least 50 years. Below is a list of amphibians not seen in the past 25-30 years. Initiatives taken by various wildlife conservation organizations to discover their populations have not brought any positive results, and so these are believed to have gone extinct.

• Calilegua’s Marsupial Frog (Gastrotheca christiani)
• Pacific Marsupial Frog (Gastrotheca angustifrons)
• La Siberia Marsupial Frog (Gastrotheca coeruleomaculatus)
• Overlooked Squeaker Frog (Arthroleptis kutogundua)
• Cave Squeaker (Arthroleptis troglodytes)
• Chile Darwin’s Frog (Rhinoderma rufum)
• Green Poison Frog (Andinobates viridis) (Andinobates viridis)
• La Visite Robber Frog (Eleutherodactylus glanduliferoides)
• Cruz Robber Frog (Craugastor cruzi)
• Atlantic Robber Frog (Craugastor andi)
• San Pedro Robber Frog (Craugastor merendonensis)
• Bob’s Robber Frog (Craugastor punctariolus)
• Mccranie’s Robber Frog (Craugastor chrysozetetes)
• Mindo Robber Frog (Strabomantis necerus)
• Aragua Robber Frog (Pristimantis anotis) (Pristimantis anotis)
• Sugar Robber Frog (Pristimantis phragmipleuron)
• Uribe Robber Frog (Pristimantis molybrignus)
• Argelia Robber Frog (Pristimantis bernali)
• Foothill Robber Frog (Eleutherodactylus semipalmatus)
• Schmidt’s Robber Frog (Eleutherodactylus schmidti)
• Arntully Robber Frog (Eleutherodactylus orcutti)
• Nutibara Robber Frog (Strabomantis cadenai)
• Skunk Frog (Aromobates nocturnus)
• Llanos Rocket Frog (Allobates ranoides)
• Sierra Rocket Frog (Aromobates serranus)
• Leopard Rocket Frog (Aromobates leopardalis)
• White-dotted Rocket Frog (Aromobates alboguttatus)
• Bello Rocket Frog (Hyloaxulus abditaurantius)
• Ruiz’s Rocket Frog (Hyloxalus ruizi)
• Edwards’ Rocket Frog (Hyloxalus edwardsi)
• Dunn’s Rocket Frog (“Prostherapis” dunni)
• Collins’ Poison Frog (Andinobates abditus)
• Du Toit’s Torrent Frog (Arthroleptides dutoiti)
• Green And Red Venter Harlequin Toad (Atelopus pinangoi)
• Scarlet Harlequin Toad (Atelopus sorianoi)
• Mindo Harlequin Frog (Atelopus mindoensis)
• Flat-spined Atelopus (Atelopus planispina)
• Campo Grande Tree Frog (Boana cymbalum)
• Izecksohn’s Treefrog (Bokermannohyla izecksohni)
• Amazon Giant Glass Frog (Centrolene pipilata)
• Pacific Giant Glass Frog (Centrolene geckoideum)
• Nombre De Dios Streamside Frog (Craugastor fecundus)
• Ghost Flesh-bellied Frog (Craugastor phasma)
• Bocourt’s Tree Frog (Dryophytes bocourti)
• Rabbs’ Fringe-limbed Treefrog (Ecnomiohyla rabborum)
• Oaxacan Fringe-limbed Treefrog (Ecnomiohyla echinata)
• Eneida’s Coquí (Eleutherodactylus eneidae)
• Web-footed Coquí (Eleutherodactylus karlschmidti)
• Golden Coquí (Eleutherodactylus jasperi)
• Itatiaia Highland Frog (Holoaden bradei)
• Parjacti Treefrog (Hyloscirtus chlorosteus)
• Paramo Toad (Nannophryne cophotis)
• Puebla Frog (Lithobates pueblae)
• Tlaloc’s Leopard Frog (Lithobates tlaloci)
• Yellow-spotted Tree Frog (Litoria castanea)
• Peppered Tree Frog (Litoria piperata)
• Trueb’s Cochran Frog (Nymphargus truebae)
• Amani Forest Frog (Parhoplophryne usambarica)
• La Planada Poison Frog (Paruwrobates andinus)
• Jacobson’s Bubble-nest Frog (Philautus jacobsoni)
• Manengouba River Frog (Phrynobatrachus manengoubensis)
• Lake Oku Puddle Frog (Phrynobatrachus njiomock)
• Chevron-spotted Brown Frog (Rana chevronta)
• Cerro Pelón Tree Frog (Sarcohyla calvicollina)
• Semiaquatic Tree Frog (Sarcohyla pachyderma)
• Speckled Tree Frog (Sarcohyla psarosema)
• Blue-eyed Aquatic Tree Frog (Sarcohyla cyanomma)
• Sierra Juarez Tree Frog (Sarchohyla sabrina)
• Puebla Tree Frog (Sarcohyla charadricola)
• Voiceless Tree Frog (Sarcrohyla siopela)
• Black Water Frog (Telmatobius niger)
• Loja Water Frog (Telmatobius cirrhacelis)
• Vellard’s Water Frog (Telmatobius vellardi)
• Arica Water Frog (Telmatobius pefauri)
• Venezuelan Yellow Frog (Atelopus carbonerensis)
• Osgood’s Ethiopian Toad (Altiphrynoides osgoodi)
• Angelito Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus angelito)
• Huila Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus ebenoides)
• Carabaya Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus erythropus)
• Forest Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus farci)
• Malvasa Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus eusebianus)
• Morona-santiago Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus halihelos)
• Guanujo Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus guanujo)
• Colombian Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus minutulus)
• San Isidro Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus pedimarmoratus)
• Niceforo’s Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus nicefori)
• Painted Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus pictiventris)
• Schmidt’s Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus subornatus)
• Bogota Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus subornatus)
• Rednose Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus oxyrhynchus)
• Peru Stubfoot Toad (Atelopus peruensis)
• Chief’s Toad (Incilius majordomus)
• Pico Blanco Toad (Incilius fastidiosus)
• Hispaniolan Crestless Toad (Peltophryne fluviatica)
• Mesopotamia Beaked Toad (Rhinella rostrata)
• Poynton’s Forest Toad (Nectophrynoides poyntoni)
• Piebald Alpine Toad (Scutiger maculatus)

Extinct Prehistoric Amphibians

• Amphibamus 
• Archegosaurus 
• Beelzebufo (Devil Frog) 
• Metoposaurus 
• Eryops 
• Crassigyrinus
• Microbrachis 
• Phlegethontia 
• Branchiosaurus 
• Diplocaulus 
• Cacops 
• Mastodonsaurus

Why Are Amphibians Going Extinct

Frogs and toads are the subjects of many tests, and they are also harvested as food or to be used in biology classrooms. Additionally, all amphibians are especially sensitive to changes in any environment and ecosystem, thus they are considered ‘indicator species.’ Scientists study frogs, toads, and salamanders to understand how healthy an ecosystem is. These species may be affected by various issues, like fungal diseases, due to pollutants in their ecosystem.