Includes bibliographical references (pages 291-299).

Hell: Henderson -- From here to there -- Creepy crawly -- Surprised but not crazy -- Metamorphosis -- When the fish began to walk -- Rumors. Theories. Rules of engagement -- Choosing sides -- Biggest experiment ever -- Famous last days of the golden toad: Uncertainties -- Bad weather -- "We've found something in the water" -- Bad boy -- Green mountain. In the tradition of "The Hot Zone" comes an explosive investigation into a global catastrophe in the making. moving from America's swamps and wetlands to laboratories and government back rooms, Souder dramatically reveals the warning implicit in an outbreak of mutated frogs, explaining the importance of the amphibians to our fragile ecosystems and suggesting what their possible extinction means to the habitability of the planet for all species, including the human race.