The Digital Frog Blog

As we mentioned in the last entry, 2008 has been declared as the Year of the Frog. And while the year officially kicked off on January 1, with this being a leap year, many zoos and aquariums around the world are using today, February 29, as the day to really start their educational and awareness activities to promote amphibian conservation.

At Digital Frog International, we’ve been supporters of frogs since we started over a decade ago. Our first educational software program was our virtual frog dissection, anatomy and ecology program, The Digital Frog. Since its release, the program has changed and evolved, but the core has always remained the same: to provide a viable alternative to real dissections and to emphasize ecology—the study of living frogs–alongside their dissected counterparts. Even our Digital Field Trip series of programs highlight frogs and toads, among other organisms, to show their place in ecosystems from wetlands to rainforests, and even deserts.

Experts believe that after more than 360 million years on the planet, between one-third and half of the world’s 6000 species of amphibian could become extinct within our lifetimes. Over the years, with The Digital Frog being used in thousands of schools across North America, we have helped save literally tens of thousands of frogs (not to mention thousands of dollars to schools who save on purchasing frogs for dissection).

Be among the first 29 to buy and save 29%

With this being the Year of the Frog, we want to help make it even easier and more affordable to bring the benefits of The Digital Frog 2.5 to your classroom or home. Starting today, February 29, 2008, we’re giving a 29% discount to the first 29 orders for The Digital Frog 2.5. That’s a savings of $24.65 off a home version CD, or more than $260 off the price of a building site license.

Act fast, though. We can’t promise how long this offer will last. (You can order directly from us here.)

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I have always had an interest in the natural world and its inhabitants, but have certainly grown fonder of frogs since coming to work at Digital Frog International.

This year, 2008 has been dedicated as the Year of The Frog not because of the Chinese Zodiac, but because of the dire situation for frogs and amphibians around the world.

After surviving for over 360 million years, frogs and other amphibians are dying the world over. We could lose as much as 1/3 to 1/2 of the known 6,000 species in our lifetime. Loss of habitat is a big threat, but Chytrid Fungi is quickly becoming the greatest threat to frogs and amphibians. A new strain of the fungi was discovered in 1999, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis and it is believed this is responsible for the widespread demise or many amphibian species.

I have four children and that is not the legacy I want to leave them. They deserve a healthy world with diverse species in it.
We need to take responsibility for the destruction of habitat; frogs are like the canaries in the coal mine , they are indicators of environmental health. The destruction of this species will be a forerunner for many more to follow.

We can help through agencies like Amphibian Ark who are trying to improve public awareness of the frog’s and amphibian’s dire situation. The global conservation plan is to keep species that will go extinct in captivity until the time comes that they can be secured again in the wild.

I do feel that we are doing something at Digital Frog by offering an alternative to real frog dissection, by doing virtual dissection we are saving frogs.

I am spreading the word among my friends and family about the frog’s troubles and hope you can do the same. We all know how fast things can spread when I tell two friends, they tell two friends etc.
Locally we can help to clean up and maintain healthy ponds and wetlands for our North American frogs.

I have taught my children from a young age that looking after the whole environment, not just our small part is an important responsibility, and one that we all need to take seriously. We have enjoyed some great family times over the years helping with clean-ups in our community. I am sure your community does something similar and if not maybe that is something you and your family would like to take on in this all important Year of the Frog

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If you are a previous visitor to the Digital Frog International web site, you’ll undoubtedly have noticed we’ve been busy over the past while:

Updated digital frogs and field trips
Last year we released updated versions of our virtual frog dissection, anatomy and ecology program The Digital Frog 2.5, as well as all three of our Digital Field Trips: The Wetlands, The Rainforest and The Desert. We also introduced The Digital Field Trip Series DVD, with all three field trips on one disc for a savings of more than 20% off the price of the individual titles.

A new web site
Earlier this year, we launched our new web site—both with a new design and new content to make it easier to find out about our educational software and how to get the most out of it. But that was just the first step.

Introducing… The Digital Frog Blog
Right now, you are looking at the newest addition to the Digital Frog International web site: The Digital Frog Blog. Why a blog? We want to reach out to teachers, parents and homeschoolers to share interesting and useful facts related to the natural sciences, as well as tips and techniques for getting the most out of our educational science software, plus anything else you tell us you are interested in.

Coming soon: E-commerce and interactive forums
We’re currently hard at work on launching our online store to make it even easier to purchase Digital Frog International software, safely and securely without leaving home.

And to help our users connect and get the most out of their software, we will also be launching the Digital Frog forum shortly, allowing teachers, parents, homeschoolers and even students to connect with each other to discuss everything from integrating our programs into your curriculum to useful resources in education, science, nature, geography or whatever else you want to discuss. The sky is the limit.

Help us help you
We definitely don’t want this to be a one way street. Please tell us how you would like to see The Digital Frog Blog evolve. Leave your comments. We promise we’ll read every one. We are listening and are looking forward to this next step in opening the dialogue with you, the teachers, parents, homeschoolers, students and nature-lovers that have kept us doing what we’ve been doing for the past 12 years.

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