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Dear Frogloggers,
I joined the Amphibian Survival Alliance (ASA) in July of last year, and have since been very fortunate to learn about many new and remarkable initiatives conserving amphibians all over the world. During this time, I have met a great many passionate people, and have been hugely enthused by the strength and commitment of the ASA partnership, and our fantastic colleagues in the IUCN SCC Amphibian Specialist Group (ASG) and Amphibian Ark. Amphibians have been a considerable preoccupation of mine for a long time. Following years of admiring them from afar (and often up close as well), I started working on global amphibian conservation efforts over 10 years ago. I began by coordinating the Zoological Society of London’s EDGE Amphib-ians programme, which works to conserve some of the world’s most evolutionarily distinct and threatened species, including the mighty Chinese giant salamander and secretive Sagalla Caecilian. I followed this with a Ph.D. that focussed on improving the impact of amphibian conservation through developing the use of scientific evidence to guide management interventions. During this time, I also worked as a Programme Officer for the ASG. I therefore thought I had a reasonable knowledge of amphibian conservation efforts, but it has been wonderful to learn every week about new projects and organisations that are devoted to developing a better future for amphibians.
Following a year of events that have rocked the world several times over, it is perhaps a comfort to know that some things remain unchanged. Amphibians are still amazing. More specifically, frogs are still fantastic, salamanders are still splendid, and caecilians are still, well, limbless…and ex-ceptional. Although these incredible species continue to need our help more than ever, it is also comforting to know how many people out there want to ensure that amphibians thrive in our shared world. This bumper double issue of FrogLogexplores the important issue of captive breeding for conservation purposes, and also (fittingly enough for Valentine’s Day) examines many fascinating approaches to sharing love and appreciation for amphibians.
As we unite to implement the Amphibian Conservation Action Plan globally, we must continue to tackle key threats and management issues that help improve our ability to effectively conserve amphibians. Furthermore, there is much we can learn from one another. So many threats are linked, and so many management actions demand a thorough understanding of multiple stressors to the survival of amphibians.
We hope that you will learn a lot from this issue, and feel assured of the great passion and skill driving action across the amphibian conservation community. Wishing you a very happy Valentine’s Day full of love for amphibians everywhere!
Helen Meredith
Executive Director, Amphibian Survival Alliance
TABLE OF CONTENTS
3 – Editorial
NEWS FROM THE ASA & ASG
4 – A Unique Partnership to Protect the Salamanders of the Great Smoky Mountains
7 – New Red List 0f Uruguayan Amphibian Species
10 – Amphibians in the November 2016 update of The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
13 – Twenty-five Percent of Known Amphibian Species are up-to-date on The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
NEW FROM THE AMPHIBIAN COMMUNITY
6 – Public Outreach Campaign to Promote Awareness of the Trade and use of the Lake Titicaca Frog, Telmatobius culeus
15 – Love at First Squeak: Scientists Re-Discover Tiny Lost Frog Species in Zimbabwe
17 – Land Purchase in Panama Helps Protect a “Sky Island” of Cloud Forest for Threatened Amphibians
19 – The Whitley Awards 20 Back to the Future with Frog Hero Gina Della Togna
22 – Why did the Bullfrog Cross the Road?
23 – Creating Protected Areas for Threatened Amphibians and Reptiles
24 – Race for the Rainbow Toad
26 – Is the Demand for Amphibians as Pets Threatening Their Survival in the Wild?
27 – Assessing the Impacts of Invasive Amphibians
29 – An Update on Crowdfunding for Chytrid 2.0
30 – Carpathian Newt Collection in Sarisske Museum Bardejov, Slovakia—the Largest in the World?
31 – Within the Public Water Column: Eurycea waterlooensis
AMPHIBIAN CONSERVATION ACTION PLAN UPDATES
33 – Amphibian Reintroduction Guidelines are Coming!
34 – The ASG Captive Breeding Working Group
36 – Developing IUCN Amphibian Conservation Translocations and Reintroduction Guidelines
37 – Amphibian Captive Breeding Programs for Madagascar: Where We Are Now and the Road Ahead
40 – The Amphibian Ark – 10 Years on
43 – Developing Baw Baw Frog Husbandry at Melbourne Zoo
47 – The Importance of Incorporating Field Data into Captive Breeding Programs, and Vice Versa: Breeding the Critically Endangered Lake Oku Frog (Xenopus longipes) at ZSL London Zoo
50 – Developing Captive Breeding Capacity to Save an Iconic Bolivian Species: Ten Years of Collaboration
53 – Saving the Lake Titicaca Water Frog in Bolivia
56 – From Jersey to Madagascar: A Keeper’s Visit to Support the Development of In-Country ex situ Facilities
58 – Amphibian Ark Seed Grant Program
62 – Students Secure the Safe Migration of Amphibians in Leeuwarden
65 – Discovery by a Citizen Scientist: A new Species of Frog that calls like a Kingfisher
67 – Nurturing Citizen Scientists Through Wetland Rehabilitation
68 – #NotJustFrogs – A Citizen Science Initiative in a Stunning University Town of India
70 – Raising the Next Generation of Amphibian Aficionados
74 – Making the Leap Toward Sustainable Change
76 – Amphibian Conservation Action in the Atlantic Forest in Bahia, Brazil: Research, Monitoring, Environmental Education and Outreach
80 – Changing Attitudes about Amphibians: Experiential Learning with Lynford School, Ixopo
83 – Frog Monitoring in New Zealand: Increased Effort Involving Local Communities
86 – Using Educational Interventions as Sustainable Solutions to Prevent Further Amphibian Declines