Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project

Panamanian golden frog day is Aug. 14.

Golden Frog Day is a national day of awareness in Panama that occurs annually on August 14th. This day was designated in 2010 to celebrate the Panamanian golden frog and promote amphibian conservation. This year, the Golden Frog Day celebration starts on August 8^th and goes until the 14^th with different activities in El Valle and Panama city. On Aug. 13, those of us at Summit Zoo in Gamboa will offer activities that help demonstrate the significance of frogs in ecosystems and why we should protect them. Here is a detailed agenda of the many activities next week.

Golden Frog Day Celebration Agenda

Monday, Aug. 8^th to Friday, Aug 12^th (El Valle)

8 am – 2 pm: Writing and Drawing Contest for students from elementary and high schools from El Valle.

Saturday, August 13^th (El Valle)

9 am: Elementary and high schools, governmental and non-governmental institutions from El Valle and near towns will be part of a Golden Frog Day Parade on El Valle Principal Avenue.

7:30 pm: Play in honor of golden frogs. Title: “La India Dormida” by high school students from the Instituto Profesional Técnico de El Valle at San José de El Valle Church.

Saturday, August 13^th (Summit Zoo)

10 am: Golden Frog Day Celebration with 100 Summit Zoo kids. First Frog Exhibit at the Zoo: Two common species and their amazing stories.

11 am: A sneak peek on Frog Conservation in Panama. Exhibit: Frogs food at the Zoo: flies, worms, crickets and more. What else can we do?

12 pm: Frog Fun! Games and educational activities with kids.

1 pm: Frog lunch and Frog cake.

Sunday, August 14^th (El Valle)

11 am: Mass at San Jose de El Valle Church.

12 pm: Visit to EVACC

2 pm: Marching bands performances at Hotel Pekin plaza in front of El Valle Public Market.

We would also like to encourage all of our frog friends to enter their cool golden frog pictures or any other amphibian picture in our online photography contest. How can you participate? You just need to friend us on Facebook and upload your frog pics (one per person), then tag us and tell all your friends to “like” it. Don’t forget to post your name and email so we can contact you when you win! The winner will receive a specially commissioned traditional tagua carving of their winning frog made by Lanky.

Smithsonian’s National Zoo biologist Matt Evans talks about what it’s like to care for Panama’s national animal.

The Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project has established an assurance colony for two species endemic to the Darien, including the Toad Mountain harlequin frog (Atelopus certus), shown here. (Brian Gratwicke, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute)

Smithsonian scientists have confirmed that chytridiomycosis, a rapidly spreading amphibian disease, has reached a site near Panama’s Darien region. This was the last area in the entire mountainous neotropics to be free of the disease. This is troubling news for the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project, a consortium of nine U.S. and Panamanian institutions that aims to rescue 20 species of frogs in imminent danger of extinction.

Chytridiomycosis has been linked to dramatic population declines or even extinctions of amphibian species worldwide. Within five months of arriving at El Cope in western Panama, chytridiomychosis extirpated 50 percent of the frog species and 80 percent of individuals.

“We would like to save all of the species in the Darien, but there isn’t time to do that now,” said Brian Gratwicke, biologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute and international coordinator for the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project. “Our project is one of a few to take an active stance against the probable extinction of these species. We have already succeeded in breeding three species in captivity. Time may be running out, but we are looking for more resources to take advantage of the time that remains.”

The Darien National Park is a World Heritage site and represents one of Central America’s largest remaining wilderness areas. In 2007, Doug Woodhams, a research associate at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, tested 49 frogs at a site bordering the Darien. At that time, none tested positive for the disease. In January 2010, however, Woodhams found that 2 percent of the 93 frogs he tested were infected.

“Finding chytridiomycosis on frogs at a site bordering the Darien happened much sooner than anyone predicted,” Woodhams said. “The unrelenting and extremely fast-paced spread of this fungus is alarming.”

The Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project has already established captive assurance colonies in Panama of two priority species endemic to the Darien—the Pirre harlequin frog (Atelopus glyphus) and the Toad Mountain harlequin frog (A. certus). In addition, the Smithsonian’s National Zoo maintains an active breeding program for the Panamanian golden frog, which is Panama’s national animal. The Panamanian golden frog is critically endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, and researchers have not seen them in the wild since 2008.

Chytridiomycosis is a rapidly spreading amphibian disease that attacks the skin cells of amphibians (shown here) and is wiping out frog species worldwide. (Doug Woodhams, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute)

“We would like to be moving faster to build capacity,” Gratwicke said. “One of our major hurdles is fundraising to build a facility to house these frogs. Until we jump that hurdle, we’re limited in our capacity to take in additional species.”

Nearly one-third of the world’s amphibian species are at risk of extinction. While the global amphibian crisis is the result of habitat loss, climate change and pollution, chytridiomycosis is at least partly responsible for the disappearances of 94 of the 120 frog species thought to have gone extinct since 1980.

“These animals that we are breeding in captivity will buy us some time as we find a way to control this disease in the wild and mitigate the threat directly,” said Woodhams, who was the lead author of a whitepaper Mitigating Amphibian Disease: strategies to maintain wild populations and control chytridiomycosis. This paper, published in Frontiers in Zoology, systematically reviews disease-control tools from other fields and examines how they might be deployed to fight chytrid in the wild. One particularly exciting lead in the effort to find a cure is that anti-chytrid bacteria living on frog skin may have probiotics properties that protect their amphibian host from chytrid by secreting anti-fungal chemicals. Woodhams recently discovered that some Panamanian species with anti-chytrid skin bacteria transmit beneficial skin chemicals and bacteria to their offspring. The paper, Social Immunity in Amphibians: Evidence for Vertical Transmission of Innate Defenses, was published in Biotropica in May.

“We are all working around the clock to find a cure,” Gratwicke said. “Woodhams’ discovery that defenses can indeed be transferred from parent to offspring gives us hope that if we are successful at developing a cure in the lab, we may find a way to use it to save wild amphibians.”

The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute serves as an umbrella for the Smithsonian Institution’s global effort to understand and conserve species and train future generations of conservationists. Headquartered in Front Royal, Va., SCBI facilitates and promotes research programs based at Front Royal, the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., and at field research stations and training sites worldwide.

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Media only: contact Lindsay Renick Mayer, Smithsonian’s National Zoo, 202-633-3081

Highland color-form of the Limosa harlequin frog (Atelopus limosus)

Cute Frog of the Week: May 30, 2011

Camouflaged among the moss-covered rocks in the highlands and lowlands of Panama, the Limosa harlequin frog (Atelopus limosus) is difficult to spot even with its yellow clinging toes. These green-and-black-eyed amphibians leave their superb hiding places during the dry season and make their way to the fast-flowing streams of the Panamanian rainforest. Females lay their eggs in streambeds, where eager males wait to fertilize them. Laying clutches of eggs in faster-flowing waters may seem treacherous for the tiny frogs, but they brave the risk. Eggs that are laid in those areas of streams are less likely to be preyed upon, or to face competition from other frog species.

Lowland color-form of the Limosa harlequin frog (Atelopus limosus)

Limosa harlequin frog tadpoles are not left to be swept away by hurried streams once they hatch. Suction disks on their bellies help anchor them to the rocks in the streambeds. However, the species seems to be losing its grip in its fight to survive. It is listed as endangered in the wild and the population is still decreasing. It is facing threats ranging from deforestation to pollution. Those threats are compounded by the ravaging affects of the chytrid fungus.  The Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project has brought the Limosa harlequin frog into captivity and is learning how to successfully breed them, giving hope for the survival of the species.

Photo credit: Brian Gratwicke, Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project

Every week the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project posts a new photo of a cute frog from anywhere in the world with an interesting, fun and unique story to tell. Be sure to check back every Monday for the latest addition.

Send us your own cute frogs by uploading your photos here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/cutefrogoftheweek/

Amphibians around the world are disappearing. Recent estimates suggest that nearly one-third (32 percent) or about 2,000 species of this unique group of animals is threatened with extinction. Nearly 168 species are thought to have gone extinct in the last two decades. With increasing land-use and climate change around the world, these trends are likely to worsen. To better understand and conserve these diverse and fascinating creatures, scientists urgently need information on where amphibians persist.

To collect this information, we need your help. Today, AmphibiaWeb, the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, Center for Biological Diversity, the IUCN/SSC Amphibian Specialist Group, and Amphibian Ark are launching the Global Amphibian Blitz. Visit www.inaturalist.org/projects/global-amphibian-blitz to contribute your observations of amphibians along with the dates and locations where you observed them, anywhere in the world. You can even upload a photo of the species with your observation, or link to a photo on your Flickr or Picassa pages. If you’re unsure which species you’ve seen, mark them as ‘ID Please!’ and our team of expert curators will help you with your identification. Watch this short video for more information.

Together, through the cooperation of scientists and amateur naturalists from around the globe, let’s census the world’s amphibians to discover which species are still here and where they persist. Let’s find every one!

How can I contribute my observations?

Watch getting started video or follow these four easy steps:

1. Visit www.inaturalist.org/projects/global-amphibian-blitz and click ‘add observations’.
2. Log in to iNaturalist – the engine behind the Global Amphibian Blitz – with your Facebook, Twitter, Google, or Yahoo account.
3. Upload you amphibian photo from your hard-disk or link to your photo that’s already on Flickr or Picassa.
4. Add a date, geographic coordinates, and the best identification you can and click ‘’Save observation’.

How else can I get involved?

In addition to contributing your own observations, if you know something about amphibians in a certain part of the world, you can help identify other’s observations. If you are an amphibian expert and would like to sign on as a curator, contact global-amphibian-blitz@inaturalist.org. You can also help by telling your friends about the Blitz or spreading the word on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and Picassa.

How can do I keep track of updates?

Check back regularly to see how the Blitz is progressing, receive updates from curators, and compare your contributions with others. You can also follow the Global Amphibian Blitz Blog where we will report any particularly unusual observations.

What about threatened species?

For contributions identified as a threatened species according to the IUCN Red List the public coordinates will be obscured by about 5 kilometers to discourage those who would seek to exploit rare species.

What taxonomy are you using?

The Global Amphibian Blitz uses the checklist of species from Amphibiaweb which is updated weekly with newly described species. We use the taxonomy of the Amphibian Species of the World to group these species into families and genera.

Cute Frog of the Week: May 2, 2011

Critically endangered since 2004, the endemic Panamanian golden frog has suffered a population decline of 80 percent over the last 10 years. An angular, dark yellow frog with a trademark swagger, the golden frog is a symbol of Panama’s abundant biodiversity. It is also well-known for its potent skin toxins, which it uses to protect itself against predators. A single frog’s skin contains enough nerve-disabling poison to kill 1,200 mice! Frequently found in and around high mountain forest streams, the golden frog in its golden-yellow, liberally spotted morph (individuals come in various colors and patterns) visually warns potential predators to stay away.

Despite its toxicity, the frog has found itself nearly defenseless against chytridiomycosis, the amphibian disease epidemic that has recently devastated frog populations and biodiversity throughout Central America. Because the range of this frog species is limited, extinction seems all too likely, unless human intervention succeeds in keeping the species around in captivity. Fortunately, an in-situ conservation program in western Panama (the El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center, aptly named EVACC) has led the conservation effort as part of the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project.

Frog declines raise a number of fascinating questions.  For example, recent studies have shown that Panamanian golden frogs are making a last-ditch attempt to ward off infection by thermally killing the pathogen. Fortunately, researchers believe that the chytrid fungus does not thrive at temperatures 5 C above the frog’s normal body temperature. The frog attempts to increase its body temperature above normal levels by moving within its habitat to warmer places. As an ectotherm (a cold-blooded animal), the frog can only control its internal temperature by these behavioral adjustments to its external environment. Nonetheless, these efforts by wild golden frog populations may by in vain. Chytridiomycosis has so far prevailed, but intense conservation efforts in Panama keep hope alive. Panama’s symbol of amphibian beauty continues to awe humans in safe environments like EVACC. Re-introduction of these individuals and any offspring into the wild will, we are assured, only take place if and when the epidemic has abated.

Photo credit: Mehgan Murphy, Smithsonian’s National Zoo

Every week the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project posts a new photo of a cute frog from anywhere in the world with an interesting, fun and unique story to tell. Be sure to check back every Monday for the latest addition.

Send us your own cute frogs by uploading your photos here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/cutefrogoftheweek/

Jenyva shows off an Atelopus limosus the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo team captured during the February expedition. (Photo courtesy of the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo)

Wanted: Adventurous expedition members to hike into the jungles of Panama looking for the rare Atelopus limosus. Must be willing to hike long hours in rugged, muddy terrain and in thigh-deep water, and ready to be wet, hungry, tired, and not afraid of spiders, snakes, scorpions, and lots of insects.

SIGN ME UP!!!

How could I pass up an opportunity to hike, explore, and camp in the jungle, all while helping save a species? This February was my first trip to Panama, however I followed the blog posts from other Cheyenne Mountain Zoo team members during previous expeditions to Panama, so I felt like I had already been there. I knew it was going to be a challenging trip, both physically and mentally. Would we find frogs? That was my biggest concern. As we all know, the chytrid fungus is taking its toll on frog populations around the world and the rare Atelopus limosus is not immune to chytrid’s deadly sting.

Atelopus limosus was our target species since the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project only had one female and four males in captivity. The future of the species appeared to depend on our findings. It was the “dry season” in Panama (although, being from Colorado, rain every day does not seem very “dry”!) and therefore, was the best time to find females, as they would be coming down to the streambeds to lay their eggs. The males would be there waiting.

We hiked along the stream and carefully searched the moss-covered rocks for the small, highly camouflaged black and green frogs. It was tough to be quiet and sneak up on our target as we sloshed around streambeds, stepped over branches, and slipped on rocks. We paid especially close attention to areas of the stream where the water moved a little faster. Atelopus limosus lay their eggs in faster-moving water to reduce competition from other frog species and reduce predation. The tadpoles are specially designed with little suction cup disks on their bellies to help them hold onto the rocks and keep them from being washed away. Pretty cool!

Our team found just four Atelopus limosus during our time in the field, but we were able to give hope to the species as one of those caught was a young female. We handed off our precious cargo to the capable staff at the Summit Zoo, who take their job and role in frog conservation very seriously. They are working hard to care for and propagate many other amphibian species besides Atelopus limosus to ensure the sounds of frogs continue to be heard in the jungles of Panama.

Here’s a video of Antonia Chastain, a member of the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo team, finding out first-hand how difficult it is to catch an Atelopus limosus during the February trip:

–Jenyva Turner, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo animal keeper (and first-time frog finder!)

It’s that time of year again for us eager gardeners.  Help out our amphibian friends even in your own backyard by creating good habitat for frogs and toads.

–Cindy Hoffman, Defenders of Wildlife

Heidi Ross and Edgardo Griffith run a facility in Panama that is a safe haven for more than 60 species of frogs. (Photo by: Lindsay Renick Mayer, Smithsonian's National Zoo)

Last fall I had the privilege to spend some time at the El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center (EVACC) in El Valle, Panama. At the time I described it as a frog lover’s heaven. It is also an impressive safe haven for Panama’s national animal, the Panamanian golden frog, and about 60 other struggling species. I had an opportunity to sit down with both Edgardo Griffith and Heidi Ross, who run EVACC, and here is some of what these frog heroes had to say about their important work.

What is EVACC’s role in the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project?

Edgardo Griffith, Director of EVACC: Our role is to be part of the whole conservation effort. In the beginning, we were all working separately. In Panama City especially, there wasn’t much going on in the way of amphibian conservation. Fortunately, the National Zoo and our other partners, such as the Houston Zoo, were also alarmed by the fact that so many amphibians were disappearing because of this chytrid fungus. Now that EVACC is involved with the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project, we can make an even bigger effort toward amphibian conservation. It’s also encouraging for people to see that an international group of people are working toward the amphibian conservation of our country. What we focus on here at EVACC is identifying a group of species that we know, if we don’t do something now, they will go extinct. They go on our priority list. We find those species and bring them to our facility to study and care for them and provide a safe and comfortable breeding environment.

How did you get involved with amphibian conservation?

Heidi Ross, Associate Director of EVACC: I first came to Panama in 2000 with the Peace Corp. and worked with them for four years. I started doing volunteer work on the weekends and surveying for frogs, which is when I met Edgardo. I had studied biology in college at Luther but to go out into a tropical rainforest at night and see these frogs was unbelievable. After that, I started going out more and more to learn about the frogs in Panama.

Edgardo: After 3 ½ years of studying biology and parasitology at the University of Panama, I got invited to go to the field and look for snakes and frogs for a field seminar. I wasn’t really happy about that. I didn’t want to go in to the jungle at night. It’s wet, dark, dangerous… You just don’t do that! I was just a normal student living in Panama City so that did not sound like fun to me. But thank god I got convinced to go. When I started finding all the different frogs, it was amazing. I had never seen anything like it and the habitat was just so beautiful. I fell in love.

What is it about frogs that make them so special?

EVACC is the only place in Panama where the country's national animal, the Panamanian golden frog, exists. (Photo by: Lindsay Renick Mayer, Smithsonian's National Zoo)

Heidi: Because they’re the coolest! I’m from Wisconsin and never really thought twice when I would see a frog outside or in my yard, but once you come to the tropics, it changes everything. The diversity here is just so enormous! You can see the frogs’ hearts beating, hear different calls, see how they utilize and manipulate their habitat. It amazes me that there are species upon species here and they all share the same space and work together. We could learn from them.

Edgardo: If you want to see an animal that really identifies a place or a healthy environment, find a frog or an amphibian because they are so sensitive to environment change or pollution. From a biology perspective, that’s a huge reason to love and appreciate frogs.

How does it feel to see these amphibian populations declining and disappearing?

Edgardo: I cannot quite describe the feeling of going to the field and not finding what you’re used to finding. You still see the rocks covered with green moss and the insects in the clear water, but you don’t see the animals that, in my mind, identify these beautiful places, that make these places perfect. You don’t see the amphibians anymore. It’s sad and it feels a little unfair. I’ve been dealing with amphibian declines since 1999. You go into the field and see the amphibian population during the summer, then you go the next year and see nothing. Your animal friends that you love and appreciate are not there any more. It’s very upsetting. Even worse, this chytrid fungus could potentially be wiping out species we have yet to even discover. And this is happening to amphibians worldwide, not just in Panama.

Heidi: To not see frogs in a stream where you know they used to be… It’s anger, frustration, sadness. A species is gone. It’s not something that’s easy to deal with, especially after you’ve invested so much in caring for and protecting these animals.

Can you describe what it’s like to take care of the amphibians at EVACC?

Heidi: It can be very challenging. We’re trying to replicate Mother Nature, but she’s pretty good at what she does. It’s so much more than just dangling a cricket in their tank, which I think a lot of people think we do. We have to check the water temperature and quality and make sure the pH levels are balanced; plants and everything have to be clean. There are so many things to do in each tank. Ultimately, we’re not breeding frogs, frogs are breeding frogs. We’re just trying to provide conditions where they feel comfortable doing what they need to do.

The Panamanian golden frog once lined the streams in El Valle during the rainy season, but is now extinct in the wild. (Photo by: Mehgan Murphy, Smithsonian's National Zoo)

Edgardo: Taking care of amphibians is an art. You have to treat each animal as an individual and use special care, especially when you know that this animal may be the last of its kind. It’s overwhelming at first to know that you’re dealing with such an important species, so you have to be careful. If you stress out, the animals can feel it, and it makes them nervous too. Although it’s a lot of work, it’s very rewarding when we hear the males calling out, not because of stress, but to the females, and they’re ready to breed. We want them to be comfortable and engage in those natural breeding behaviors.

What is it like to discover a new species?

Edgardo: It’s always exciting and feels very rewarding. You’re out there working all day and night in the streams and then you see something that you’re not familiar with. It’s always exciting when that happens. We have a lot of new species that still need to be described because it’s quite a lengthy process. And we have to be quick about it. I found a new frog in 2005 and we got the papers out in 2007. By that time, the frog was already gone, disappeared for good.

What message would you give to the public about amphibian conservation?

Edgardo: Panamanians, especially, love the Panamanian golden frog. It is a symbol of our country. There used to be golden frogs everywhere, in the streams, being sold on the streets for 50 cents. Now the only golden frogs left in Panama live at EVACC. There are no more. I think this should say something to the people of Panama who love this frog so much. We need help. If we want to protect this beautiful symbol of our country, along with thousands of other species, we need help.

Heidi: We owe it to our planet, if we can do something to help, we should do something. Whether you like it or not or don’t even know what it is. We owe it to our planet to maintain biodiversity.

-Lindsay Renick Mayer, with help from Lexie Beach, Smithsonian’s National Zoo

Students that are part of the Houston Zoo's Toad Tracker program measure a coastal plains toad. (Photo courtesy of the Houston Zoo.)

As we’ve mentioned in this blog before, the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project partners are not just trying to save species of frogs in Panama, but also in their own backyards. Here is an account of one local project that partner the Houston Zoo has taken on.

In the spring of 2010, the Houston Zoo piloted a new conservation education program called Toad Trackers. In the first year of this one-of-a-kind, interactive program, the Houston Zoo ‘tracked’ 39 coastal plains toads (Bufo nebulifer) and ‘discovered’ 88 new amphibian enthusiasts.

Led by the Zoo’s Conservation Programs Manager Rachel Rommel and assisted by the Zoo’s Education Department, Toad Trackers expands on the idea of “citizen science,” such as Frog Watch USA and the North American Amphibian Monitoring Program, introducing students to field research methods and tools used by conservation biologists and wildlife professionals, such as Kestrel meters, calipers, GPS units, microchips and scales to track, monitor and assess the health of toad populations.  Toad Trackers was made possible by a grant from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Community Outdoor Outreach Program.

On select nights (warm and wet) on Zoo grounds, the supervised students conduct a ‘toad round-up,’ collecting every toad that can be found for processing and data collection.

The coastal plains toad has adapted quite well to living amongst humans and has survived despite a shrinking and fragmented habitat.  The large population of this particular toad and its ability to thrive in urban areas makes it a perfect candidate to study, both from a convenience and an environmental impact perspective.

When the toad round-up begins on sticky Houston summer nights, the kids weigh, measure, determine gender, note any mutations of each toad and record its GPS coordinates.

One of the Zoo’s conservation biologists, oftentimes Paul Crump, the Houston Zoo’s Amphibian Conservation Programs Manager, then inserts a pit tag into each toad (like the microchips in your cat or dog) and the students then release the toad where it was initially captured.

Subsequent toad round ups during the same or following year will provide valuable information (through the ability to individually recognize toads) on growth rates, reproductive events, and movement patterns.

In addition to encouraging a new generation of wildlife biologists, Toad Trackers also provides a forum in which students can learn about amphibian ecology, global amphibian extinctions and why monitoring local amphibian populations is important to detecting declines in our own region.

A student involved in the Toad Tracker program holds one of the toads she caught. (Photo courtesy of the Houston Zoo)

Additionally, the data collected through Toad Trackers will be used to publish a peer-reviewed paper on native toad populations based on the world of citizen scientists.

In 2010, the Toad Trackers program was incorporated into the Houston Zoo’s home schooling program; Camp Zoofari, the Zoo’s summer day camp program; Zoo Crew, the Zoo’s teen volunteer program; and with one community outreach group, the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas.

In 2010, Toad Trackers captured a total of 39 Bufo nebulifer. Of those, 77 percent were female, 21 percent were male.  The gender of two percent of the toads could not be determined due to life stage.

The average SUL was 69.22 mm for female toads and 60.1 mm for male toads, well within normal range for the species.  The average weight was 38 grams for females and 27.44 grams for males. Our citizen scientists also detected Rio Grande chirping frogs and green tree frogs on Zoo grounds on most field evenings.

Students reported one recapture of a female toad.  Named “Emily,” the toad traveled .02 miles from her last location, had grown 1.7 mm and increased her weight by 2 grams.

All but one animal (too small) was AVID microchipped.  The proportion of animals marked in the first sampling in 2010 that are recaptured in the second sampling this year can be used to calculate an estimate of the overall population size of the toads on Zoo grounds.

The students made some interesting observations in 2010.  One female Bufo nebulifer was found approximately 24 inches off the ground sitting inside a tropical plant by the Zoo’s reptile house. Neill and Grubb (1971) found Coastal Plain toads from 2 to 5 meters above the ground in oak trees; they can be considered arboreal in that individual toads will find tree holes and may use them repeatedly for periods of weeks.

On numerous occasions, students observed female Bufo nebulifer vibrating and chirping upon capture.  With this particular species, females are not generally known to display release calls as this is considered a male behavior.

–Brian Hill, Houston Zoo