Arizona Outdoorsman / AZOD

AZOD Navigationè Home | Fishing | Fly Fishing | Saltwater| Hunting | Archery | Gun Dogs | Shooting | Off-Highway | Camping | Gold Prospecting | Conservation | Upcoming Events | Discussion Board | Bragboard | Clubs/Organizations |

 


Information from AG&FD site
Repeated for "news reporting purposes"

Threatened frogs hop to new Arizona home

 
PHOENIX - Some of Arizona's endangered leopard frogs have hopped to a new home, with a helping hand from biologists with the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

Biologists released 50 Chiricahua leopard frogs at Sierra Blanca Lake in the White Mountains on May 28. The Chiricahua leopard frog is listed as a threatened species by the federal government.

Until the 1970s, the Chiricahua leopard frog could be found in many areas of the state. Today, its populations have declined because of habitat destruction, disease, and non-native species like the crayfish, which eats tadpoles and young frogs.

"We're pleased that we were able to place these frogs in a safer habitat than where they started out," says Mike Sredl, a Game and Fish Department herpetologist.

The released frogs came from the Three Forks area of the White Mountains. They were removed when they were eggs, then were hatched and raised at a Game and Fish Department hatchery in Pinetop. The frogs were placed in coolers and taken by truck to their new home. Biologists hope they will thrive there.

"We look forward to creating a stable population of the Chiricahua leopard frog in this lake," says Dan Groebner, a department biologist. "We want these frogs to breed and flourish here."

The Chiricahua leopard frog was listed as threatened in 2002. This type of frog is greenish-brown and can grow to be about four inches long.
The Chiricahua leopard frog is just one of the native species the Arizona Game and Fish Department is working to reestablish in our state. Other efforts involve the Mexican gray wolf, the California condor, and the Apache trout.
 

 

 

 

 

Note: The Arizona Game and Fish Department prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, disability in its programs and activities. If anyone believes they have been discriminated against in any Game and Fish program or activity, including its employment practices, the individual may file a complaint alleging discrimination directly with the Game and Fish Deputy Director, 2221 W. Greenway Rd., Phx., AZ 85023, (602) 942-3000 or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4040 N. Fairfax Dr., Ste. 130, Arlington, VA 22203. If you require this document in an alternative format, please contact the Game and Fish Deputy Director as listed above or by calling TTY at 1-800 367-8939 azgfd.com