American amphibian lovers will be jumping for joy at the news of 3,000 frogs and tadpoles from an endangered species bred and released into their former mountain homes.
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has been breeding and reintroducing the endangered mountain yellow-legged frog for decades into the San Bernardino and San Jacinto mountains.
Leaving their small carrying crates to take their first hops into the wild world, zoo conservationists smiled as they watched some 3,000 native amphibians disappear into the waters of Bluff Lake in the Big Bear area, one of several sites where reintroductions have taken place this year.
Once historically abundant, the species has declined by more than 98%. The species faces a number of threats, including disease, introduced predators, wildfire and drought. Conservation teams continue to monitor reintroduced frogs to track their health, survival and success in their native mountain habitats.
The frogs were bred at San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s Beckman Center for Conservation Research as part of a 20-year conservation breeding and reintroduction program. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance and its partners, including the US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Geological Survey, and California Department of Fish and Wildlife, have been working to conserve the species since 2006.
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What began as a rescue effort has grown into a comprehensive conservation program focused on breeding, genetic diversity, disease management, reproductive research, and reintroduction.
To date, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has reintroduced over 10,000 mountain yellow-legged frogs and tadpoles into high-elevation mountain habitats and continues to work with partners to restore this species in the wild.
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