Roll Tide and Go War Eagles

 

Absolutely, Roll Tide and Go War Eagles.

The data that populates these maps comes from graduate students going out and performing sampling. Some universities have very strong programs in the natural sciences. Other universities may have fewer resources and not place as high a priority on funding research to go out and catch frogs.

For example, if you looked at the image shown above and look at the Arkansas-Oklahoma border you might draw the conclusion that Oklahoma was much richer in amphibians than Arkansas. A more discerning conclusion might be that more species of amphibians have been reported in peer-reviewed literature and been published. Same watersheds. Same climates. Same crops and same pesticides.

Ditto for the Arkansas-Mississippi border and the Louisiana-Mississippi border.

We might be talking about only the difference of one Professor per state and a handful of grad-students...but that is what it is.

So, YES! a big tip of the hat to University of Alabama (including the one in Huntsville and other locations) and Auburn.