1 Table of Contents ATAG Definition and Scope ......................................................................................................... 4 Mission Statement ........................................................................................................................... 4 Addressing the Amphibian Crisis at a Global Level ....................................................................... 5 Metamorphosis of the ATAG Regional Collection Plan ................................................................. 6 Taxa Within ATAG Purview ........................................................................................................ 6 Priority Species and Regions ........................................................................................................... 7 Priority Conservations Activities..................................................................................................... 8 Institutional Capacity of AZA Communities .............................................................................. 8 Space Needed for Amphibians ........................................................................................................ 9 Species Selection Criteria ............................................................................................................ 13 The Global Prioritization Process .................................................................................................. 13 Selection Tool: Amphibian Ark’s Prioritization Tool for Ex situ Conservation ........................... 14 Management Categories.............................................................................................................. 15 Results of Species Selection Process ........................................................................................... 16 Key to Categorical Designations .................................................................................................. 16 Priority I Taxa Recommended for Ex situ Management .......................................................... 17 Table 1: Priority I Taxa ....................................................................................................... 17 Priority II Taxa Recommended for In situ and Ex situ Management ....................................... 18 Table 2: Priority II Taxa ...................................................................................................... 18 Priority III Taxa Recommended for In situ Focus ..................................................................... 19 Table 3: Priority III Taxa ..................................................................................................... 19 Program Status and Data Summary Tables of Current SSP Programs ................................ 21 Table 4: Program Status Table of Current SSP Species ................................................................ 21 Table 5: Program Summary Data of Current SSP Species ............................................................ 21 Table 6: Animal Program Summary Table with Primary Roles, Goals, and Essential Action Items for the Next 1-5 years .......................................................................................... 22 SSP Program Accounts ............................................................................................................... 23 Wyoming Toad SSP ...................................................................................................................... 23 Panamanian Golden Frog SSP(s) .................................................................................................. 25 Dusky Gopher Frog SSP................................................................................................................ 27 Houston Toad SSP ......................................................................................................................... 29 Recommendation Update Table ................................................................................................. 31 Table 7: Changes from the Last RCP .......................................................................................... 31 Considerations for New Studbooks and Managed Ex situ Programs..................................... 32 Decision Matrix for Forming New Ex situ Amphibian Populations for Conservation ................. 33 2 ATAG Resources ........................................................................................................................ 34 Professional Development for Amphibian Keepers and Researchers ........................................... 34 Amphibian Husbandry ................................................................................................................... 35 Amphibian Disease Management .................................................................................................. 36 Amphibian Population Management & Data Entry Guidelines .................................................... 36 Amphibian Assisted Reproductive Technologies and ATAG National Amphibian Genome Cryobank Project ........................................................................................................................... 37 ATAG Grant Program ................................................................................................................... 38 Suggested Taxa for Exhibit ......................................................................................................... 39 Table 8: Suggested Taxa for Exhibit ............................................................................................. 39 Exhibit Species Examples ............................................................................................................. 40 Suggested Taxa for Outreach ..................................................................................................... 48 Table 9: Suggested Taxa for Outreach .......................................................................................... 49 ATAG Recommendations ........................................................................................................... 50 Responsible Population Management: Humane Euthanasia ......................................................... 50 Amphibians and Outreach ............................................................................................................. 50 Amphibians in Classroom Settings................................................................................................ 50 Amphibian Welfare ....................................................................................................................... 51 Contact Information .................................................................................................................... 52 ATAG Steering Committee ........................................................................................................... 52 ATAG Advisory Committee ......................................................................................................... 52 Program Leaders ............................................................................................................................ 53 Species Contacts ............................................................................................................................ 54 Links to Amphibian Resources ................................................................................................. 55 References ..................................................................................................................................... 56 Appendix I: AArk Amphibian Species Prioritization Ranking Results and Process............ 57 Appendix II: Creating Isolation Spaces for Amphibian Programs (2020 Update) ............... 70 Appendix III: Recommended Approved forms of Euthanasia for Amphibians ................. 134 Appendix IV: General Example of an Amphibian Welfare Assessment .............................. 135 This document was respectfully submitted to AZA Animal Population Management Committee on January 1, 2020 Cover photo credits: Steve Reichling, Jeff Bean, and Matt Baronak 3 ATAG Definition and Scope Mission Statement Working globally to address amphibian declines, the ATAG supports AZA members and partners in the conservation of amphibians, both in situ and ex situ, through scientific management of populations, education, capacity-building, and research. Amphibians are in Trouble! In 2008, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) conducted the Global Amphibian Assessment (GAA), which evaluated the status of 6,285 amphibian species. The GAA reported that the sizes of more than 43% of all measured amphibian populations had declined and less than 1% of populations had increased, indicating a troubling trend. Almost one- third (32%) of amphibians are threatened with extinction globally and 168 amphibian species may have already been lost. The majority of threatened amphibians reside in the New World, with the highest numbers in Columbia, Mexico and Ecuador. Nevertheless, the bulk of endemic species in rapid decline (80-90%) are from the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba and Jamaica (IUCN, 2014). Now at the beginning of 2020, over 8,311 species of amphibians are described (Amphibiaweb, 2019). New diseases, such as the salamander chytrid fungus, Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans, are also identified, posing novel pressures upon amphibians to those that already exist, such