AArk Newsletter NewsletterNumber 43, June 2018 amphibian ark Number 43 Keeping threatened amphibian species afloat June 2018 In this issue... Reintroduction of the Northern Pool Frog to the UK - Progress Report, April 2018 ............... 2 ® Establishment of a captive breeding program for the Kroombit Tinkerfrog .............................. 4 In situ conservation of the Lemur Leaf Frog through habitat improvement and forest management practices in the Guayacán Rainforest Reserve in Costa Rica .................... 6 Neotropical amphibian biology, management and conservation course .................................. 8 Donation provides for equipment upgrades within the Biogeos Foundation facilities, at the Rescue of Endangered Venezuelan Amphibians program in Venezuela ................... 9 New AArk Conservation Grants program, and call for applications .................................. 10 Amphibian Advocates - José Alfredo Hernández Díaz, Africam Safari, Mexico ........ 11 Amphibian Advocates - Dr. Phil Bishop, Co-Chair IUCN SSC ASG............................... 12 AArk Newsletter - Instructions for authors ...... 13 A private donation helps the Valcheta Frog program in Argentina ...................................... 14 A rich food formula to raise tadpoles in captivity........................................................... 16 Vibicaria Conservation Program: creation of an ex situ model for a rediscovered species in Costa Rica ...................................................... 18 Reproduction of Dendropsophus padreluna at the Santacruz Zoological Foundation, Colombia ........................................................ 20 When bad ideas turn out well ......................... 21 Promising news for the Large-crested Toad: The number of mature individuals has increased! ....................................................... 23 The Amphibian Foundation’s Metamorphosis Meadow, a salamander community ................ 24 Recent animal husbandry documents on the AArk web site.................................................. 25 Amphibian Ark donors, January 2017 - June 2018 ....................................................... 26 Amphibian Ark c/o Conservation Planning Specialist Group 12101 Johnny Cake Ridge Road Apple Valley MN 55124-8151 USA www.amphibianark.org Phone: +1 952 997 9800 Fax: +1 952 997 9803 World Association of Zoos and Aquariums | WAZA 1 www.amphibianark.org United for Conservation AArk Newsletter Number 43, June 2018 Reintroduction of the Northern Pool Frog to the UK - Progress Report, April 2018 Karen Haysom, Species Programmes Manager; Yvette Martin, Amphibian Conservation Officer; and Jim Foster, Conservation Director, Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust, UK Introduction order to assist with reintroduction efforts for this species and other The Northern Pool Frog (Pelophylax lessonae) became nationally amphibians with a similar life history. extinct in the UK in 1995, largely because of outright habitat loss and the degradation and fragmentation of its remaining habitats. This progress report summarises work undertaken between July The species had often been considered an introduced spe- 2017 and April 2018. cies until the late 20th century, unfortunately therefore escaping conservation attention. A reintroduction program initiated by the Design, construction and equipping of ex situ facility Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC) Trust and partners in Work began in June 2017 to investigate established amphibian 2005 has restored one population to a specially prepared UK site head-starting facilities across the world, to inform the design of a using wild-to-wild translocation of Swedish founders. Whilst that facility for pool frogs. The Amphibian Pods page on the Amphibian intervention appears to have been successful to date, the result Ark web site (www.amphibianark.org/amphibian-pods/) provided a is that the UK has had only a single population of Northern Pool basis for the research. Following this desk-study we had discus- Frogs in recent years. This is clearly a perilous situation: should sions with Chelsea Tomas of the Atlanta Botanical Gardens, USA any harm come to that population, the species would again risk and Chris Michaels of London Zoo, UK. A design specification for being extirpated from the UK. an appropriately equipped 20 ft shipping container was drafted and used as the basis for soliciting quotes from three sources, The ARC Trust is now working to establish a second population two of which responded. to increase the resilience of the species in the UK, countering the risks inherent in having only a single population. The current In addition to scoping the equipment needed to set up a biosecure project plan (Baker & Foster, 2015), aims to establish this second unit e.g. air conditioning, lighting etc., we also investigated the population using a head-starting approach, taking spawn from the cost and type of equipment needed for amphibian housing and first population and then releasing well-grown larvae and meta- husbandry. Advice on best practice for amphibian husbandry and morphs at the second reintroduction site. equipment needed was sought from London Zoo. A fully costed plan was developed, covering both the capital costs of establish- An Amphibian Ark Seed Grant, awarded in May 2017 is support- ing the unit and its subsequent running costs, including the salary ing the ARC in working towards two primary outcomes: 1) the UK of a dedicated ecologist to run the facility. conservation status of the Northern Pool Frog is considerably im- proved, via the establishment of a second viable population; and Fundraising has remained the major priority throughout 2017 and 2) head-starting methods for Northern Pool Frogs are deployed 2018 and a description of fundraising activities is provided below. and evaluated, with the results documented in the literature in The level of funding achieved as of April 2018 was unfortunately not sufficient to make progress with the purchase and equipping of a head-starting unit meaning that translocations have had to be The northern clade pool frog (Pelophylax lessonae) is much postponed until 2019. Fundraising will remain a priority throughout darker in colour than its southern counterparts. 2018 and until enough money has been secured to set up the Photo: Yvette Martin. head-starting facility. 2 AArk Newsletter Number 43, June 2018 Advice on habitat management Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust members, along with The ARC instigated and chaired two meetings of the Pool Frog Zoological Society of London staff and Phil and Debbie Bishop Working Group (an advisory panel of experts set up prior to the during a field trip to study of water quality at the first reintroduction initial reintroduction project in 2005), one in September 2017 and site of the Northern Pool Frog (Pelophylax lessonae) in the UK. another in February 2018. In September the group visited the first Photo: Yvette Martin. reintroduction site with the newly appointed Reserve Manager for Norfolk Wildlife Trust at Thompson Common, Jonathan Preston. ing efforts, it was encourag- The aim of the site visit was to discuss priorities for habitat man- ing to find pool frogs resulting agement over the coming winter season and to provide insight for from an experimental head- the new reserve manager into pool frog habitat management. A starting release in 2016, with revised three-year habitat management plan is being produced for evidence of attempted breed- the first reintroduction site. This will take into account recommen- ing. Numbers of pool frogs dations from experts in the species, recent research on charac- were, as expected, rather teristics of breeding ponds, as well as advice from Professor Phil low, reinforcing the need for Bishop of the University of Otago in New Zealand and Amphibian further releases. Survival Alliance, who undertook studies of water quality at the first reintroduction site during Summer 2017. The management Disease risk plan will focus on works deigned to increase habitat quality for management advice pool frogs and encourage their spread across the site. Results Consultation with the Institute from monitoring of the implementation of this plan will then be of Zoology, UK is ongoing. A In April 2017 postage stamps used to refine habitat management plans for the second reintro- Disease Risk Management featuring the pool frog were duction site. protocol was produced in launched by the UK’s national May 2017 and a manage- postal service as an opportunity Project management ment protocol for collecting, to raise awareness of the pool Project management is an ongoing task. The ARC has been transporting and releasing frog reintroduction work. working with a professional fundraiser to expand the ways in spawn was produced in col- which we look to raise funds; this now includes grant applications, laboration between ARC and letters of interest and most recently ARC has created a new web London Zoo. page which allows individuals or organisations to make donations to individual species or to support a particular cause. In April 2017 Captive management advice postage stamps featuring the pool frog were launched by the UK’s Further consultation with London Zoo led to the production of national postal service, following consultation with the ARC (www. amphibian husbandry guidelines, these have been designed arc-trust.org/news/sand-lizard-and-pool-frog-stamps). This event to aid ARC staff in monitoring the species while in captivity and was used as an opportunity