{"id":2186102,"date":"2025-03-16T12:00:25","date_gmt":"2025-03-16T11:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/?p=2186102"},"modified":"2025-03-14T14:35:32","modified_gmt":"2025-03-14T13:35:32","slug":"you-just-hope-for-the-best-rarely-seen-froglets-the-length-of-a-grain-of-rice-released-into-small-patch-of-victorian-wilds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusingonwildlife.com\/news\/you-just-hope-for-the-best-rarely-seen-froglets-the-length-of-a-grain-of-rice-released-into-small-patch-of-victorian-wilds\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018You just hope for the best\u2019: rarely seen froglets \u2013 the length of a grain of rice \u2013 released into small patch of Victorian wilds"},"content":{"rendered":"

More than 3,000 critically endangered Baw Baw frogs have been released in Victoria\u2019s east as part of a record-breaking conservation breeding program.<\/p>\n

Zoos Victoria\u2019s reintroduction of 3,000 tiny froglets and 40 adult frogs into the high-altitude forests of the Baw Baw plateau, about 120km east of Melbourne, was the largest in its breeding program for the species.<\/p>\n

With fewer than 500 individuals remaining in the wild, Deon Gilbert, a threatened species biologist with the zoo, was hopeful many of the new recruits would survive and bolster the dwindling population.<\/p>\n

Releasing the tiny froglets \u2013 roughly the length of a grain of rice and carefully reared by the zoo\u2019s specialist amphibian keepers \u2013 was nerve-racking, Gilbert said. \u201cYou just hope for the best for all of them. It\u2019s up to them from there.\u201d Adult frogs measure up to six-centimetres long.<\/p>\n

Once abundant, the species \u2013 found only on a \u201creally small patch of real estate on the Baw Baw plateau\u201d \u2013 had suffered a 98% population crash mainly due to a disease called the chytrid fungus, Gilbert said. They also faced overlapping threats due to climate change, historic logging practices and development.<\/p>\n

Dr Kirsten Parris, a professor and amphibian ecologist at the University of Melbourne, said the Baw Baw frog was one of the rarest of Victoria\u2019s 38 frog species. Very few people had heard or seen the \u201csuper cute\u201d and \u201cchunky\u201d frog, she said, given its small distribution in a relatively remote part of the state.<\/p>\n

No Baw Baw frogs were recorded in a recent citizen science frog census called Frog Month Victoria, she said, which received more than 1,200 records of frog calls from all parts of the state. They did, however, receive some calls of another nationally listed species \u2013 the vulnerable growling grass frog \u2013 from parts of Melbourne and the Bellarine peninsula.<\/p>\n

Baw Baw frogs had developed some specialised reproductive strategies, Parris said, which made it harder for populations to recover from threats such as chytrid fungus.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt lays eggs in little nests in moist areas. The tadpoles have a semi-terrestrial life and then turn into little frogs,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"One
One of the froglets, known as metamorphs, which measure 6-7mm long. Photograph: Jo Howell\/Jo Howell\/Zoos Victoria<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

They put additional effort into making their eggs, but lay fewer \u2013 about 100 \u2013 compared with more common frogs, such as the pobblebonk frog that lays more than 1,000.<\/p>\n

In the wild, the Baw Baw frog\u2019s entire reproductive cycle happens underground in the absence of sunlight, Gilbert said. Tadpoles, which are \u201cpure white\u201d from the lack of sunlight, survive thanks to huge yolk sacs.<\/p>\n

It could take four to six years for recently released froglets to reach maturity, he said. If they survived to adulthood, some might live up to 15 years old.<\/p>\n

Gilbert was quietly optimistic the new batch could help bolster wild populations, after successfully returning smaller numbers of frogs in recent years. A recent survey undertaken at a trial release site \u2013 a patch of suitable habitat where no wild Baw Baw frogs had been recorded \u2013 revealed the zoo-bred froglets were capable of surviving in the wild.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t believe it, to be honest, when we went in to start surveying and were having all these frogs call back at us for the first time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"A
A release site for the Baw Baw frogs. Finding the tiny frogs is \u2018almost impossible\u2019 without the help of detector dogs and radio transmitters. Photograph: Jo Howell\/Jo Howell\/Zoos Victoria<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Finding frogs in the forest was \u201calmost impossible\u201d, Gilbert said, particularly Baw Baws, which had a penchant for hiding under soil and leaf litter. So to help with tracking, the adult frogs were released fitted with radio transmitters attached to a small belt around their hips.<\/p>\n

The team would also rely on their trio of specialised wildlife detection dogs \u2013 Kip, Finn and Sugar \u2013 who were trained to systematically sniff out Baw Baw frogs and sit calmly until their handlers and biologists confirmed the discovery.<\/p>\n

The zoo\u2019s recovery team plan to check in on the latest arrivals in October, during a small window of time when male Baw Baws would be calling. It will be a long wait until then.<\/p>\n

These types of recovery programs were a \u201clesson in patience\u201d, Gilbert said, adding it was important to share hopefulness and optimism when things were going in a positive direction.<\/p>\n

This article<\/a> by Petra Stock was first published by The Guardian on 6 March 2025. Lead Image: To aid with tracking, adult Baw Baw frogs were released fitted with radio transmitters attached to a small belt around their hips. Photograph: Zoos Victoria.<\/i><\/p>\n

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