AArk Newsletter NewsletterNumber 48, December 2019 amphibian ark No. 48, December 2019 KeepingKeeping threatthreatened- amphibian species afloat ISSN 2640-4141 ® In this issue... Atelopus conservation workshop / Atelopus Survival Initiative ........................................... 2 Reintroduction trials of Harlequin frogs bred in captivity at the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project ........................................ 3 Reintroducing Green Toads to historical sites; a collaborative effort between Nordens Ark and the County Administrative Board of Kalmar, Sweden............................................................. 5 Rediscovery of La Culata’s Frog (Aromobates duranti), a critically endangered species .......... 7 Baw Baw Bunker 2.0: conservation breeding program update .............................................. 10 Sharing people skills to develop amphibian husbandry in Papua New Guinea ................... 12 Amphibian Translocation for Conservation Symposium ..................................................... 14 Establishing connections between people and nature, dissemination and environmental education actions to assist the Water Frog of Lake Titicaca................................................... 15 Amphibian Ark donors, November 2019 ......... 17 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 1 www.amphibianark.org World Association of Zoos AArk Newsletter Number 48, December 2019 Atelopus conservation workshop / Atelopus Survival Initiative Luis Carrillo, Training Officer, Amphibian Ark Atelopus is a large genus of toads that occurs from Costa Rica to Bolivia including Surinam and Guayana. Atelopus species are small, generally brightly colored, and diurnal. This genus has been greatly affected by habitat loss, pollution, and introduced species, but the primary cause of these declines appears to be the amphibian fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. Many species of Atelopus are now considered endangered, while others already are extinct. Global Wildlife Conservation organized a workshop at Parque Explora in Medellín, Colombia from November 4-7. Experts from Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, and Bolivia developed an action plan to help conserve Atelopus. The Atelopus Survival Initiative was launched to implement this action plan in range countries. The thirty-four participants developed a common vision to save Atelopus from extinction. Goals, strategies, responsibilities and a time- line were developed. The action plan will guide conservation actions within range countries and will be reviewed every five years. Sponsors Organisers Atelopus Survival Initiative workshop, held in Colombia with representatives from range countries of Atelopus. Photo: Luis Carrillo. Creating a common vision for Atelopus. Photo: Luis Carrillo. 2 AArk Newsletter Number 48, December 2019 With many surplus captive bred Atelopus best way to Reintroduction trials at the Panama Amphibian Rescue and make a frog belt and Conservation Project, we decided that it get the right fit to attach the of Harlequin frogs was time to start learning how to reintro- transmitter is a bit challenging, but bred in captivity at the duce Atelopus back into the rainforests of important. We did not know how well the Panama. If we do not take these opportu- radio transmitters would work, but it turned Panama Amphibian nities to learn, we risk being stuck in con- servation paralysis with captive colonies Rescue and Limos Harlequin frog (Atelopus limosus) with of amphibians threatened by extinction. radio transmitter. Conservation Project There is a lot to learn during reintroduc- Photo by Blake Klocke Blake Klocke Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute’s Center for Conservation Genomics. Many species of Harlequin frogs (Genus: Atelopus) have experienced catastrophic declines since the arrival of the amphibian chytrid fungus in Latin America. The Panama Amphib- ian Rescue and Conservation Project has secured populations of five Atelopus species in captivity. A sixth Panamanian species, the Chiriqui Harlequin frog (Atelopus chiriquien- sis), has not been seen since 1996 and may be extinct. There is currently no method to remove the amphibian chytrid fungus from the environment for the long-term. The rainforests of Panama host a high diversity of amphibian species, and many persist in the presence of chytrid and act as disease reservoirs. At our field sites we find that 20-25% of the amphib- ians in the community are infected with chytrid – sometimes this number is as high as 45%, which may be due to seasonal variation in temperature and rainfall. Meanwhile habitat de- struction continues to reduce viable habitat for some of the Panamanian Atelopus species and it’s likely that climate change will further alter potential suitable habitat and chytrid dynamics. tions, and realistic goals need to be set about to be an incredibly useful method. to answer specific questions and improve We were able to follow individuals for up to The prospects of reintroducing spe- methodology for the future, increasing fifty-two days in the rainforest post release cies highly susceptible to chytrid chances of success. I will say this right – monitoring their distance moved, weight, seem grim at best. Generally, threats now: a lot of unpredictable things can hap- chytrid status, and overall condition. that lead to the initial decline of a pen during a reintroduction and we have Our average search time was about six species are mitigated before reintro- learned a lot during these trials. minutes for 371 recaptures during the first ductions take place. However, there release, and without the radio transmitters is reason to be optimistic: it was re- We have completed three reintroduction I am doubtful we would have found many cently found that several species that trials so far, two with the Limosa Harlequin of these individuals again. The number of initially declined when chytrid arrived Frog and one with the Variable Harlequin predation events we observed during radio in Panama have populations that Frog. Our primary goals during these tracking was surprising; arachnids and may be recovering and increasing trials was to learn about the fate of these snakes were responsible for these preda- in resistance, including the Variable released frogs and how they are affected tion events. Predation related mortalities Harlequin Frog (Atelopus varius). by chytrid post-release. We also collected occurred before many individuals even be- The Limosa Harlequin frog (Atelopus data on the existing native amphibian came infected with chytrid or succumbed limosus) also persists at some sites, community and environmental data. The to it; this was one of the most unexpected but at populations much smaller than primary methods we used were radiotrack- lessons learned during these releases. the pre-chytrid era. I think there is ing, ‘soft release’ mesocosms, and mark- For many individuals, they did not hope that one day we can produce recapture surveys. disperse far from the release frogs with some level of resistance to location, which was chytrid, or methods to mitigate chytrid During all three trials we used small radio will be developed. transmitters (Holohil LB-2X) to track the Atelopus post-release. Figuring out the 3 AArk Newsletter AArkNumber Newsletter 48, December 2019 Number 47, December2019 very interesting. Sometimes heavy rainfall drobatids would make their way through. The reintroduction Variable Harlequin frog events would cause the frogs to move Additionally, we had a few snakes break trials with these (Atelopus varius) with radio towards higher elevations. Overall, radio into the enclosures and consume the At- two Atelopus transmitter. telemetry seems to be a very data rich elopus or ants would swarm the enclosure. species provided Photo by Blake Klocke method in amphibian reintroductions. We do think there are advantages in using a lot of informa- these enclosures. The acclimation period tion that will be Mesocosms were used for ‘soft’ versus may reduce stress, which may reduce the important for future reintroductions. We ‘hard’ release comparisons. A ‘soft’ release risk of the individual rapidly dispersing or want to investigate reintroducing different means that the animals have time to ac- being predated upon post-release. The en- life stages in the future, as all these trials climate in an enclosure in the environment closures are certainly a very cost-effective included adults or late juveniles. We are before being fully released, whereas a method. We are currently thinking of ways also exploring ways to return the skin toxins ‘hard’ release involves no acclimation time. we can improve these mesocosms for the to these Harlequin frogs before releasing future. them, as this may reduce predation. We ‘Soft’ release enclosures did have some have learned a lot during these trials and benefits: they were easier to locate and The last method I want to talk about is although there is no solution to chytrid yet, monitor individuals in an enclosure, how- mark-recapture surveys. We used mark- there are many questions we can explore to ever they do have disadvantages too. recapture during the first two reintroduc- ready ourselves (and the frogs!). tion trials, and it was very ineffective for The ‘soft’ release period allowed for more monitoring individuals. Recapturing enough Thanks to Brian Gratwicke,