The effort brings the total number of L.A. Zoo-bred frogs returned to the wild to nearly 7,000 since the recovery program began
Credit: Los Angeles Zoo
NEED TO KNOW
- The L.A. Zoo released 653 endangered southern mountain yellow-legged frogs into the San Gabriel Mountains in August
- The frogs were bred in a new bio-secure facility designed to improve survival rates by raising them to a sturdier size
- Nearly 7,000 frogs have been released since the recovery program began, involving multiple zoos and wildlife organizations
Staff from the L.A. Zoo, the Aquarium of the Pacific and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) released 653 endangered southern mountain yellow-legged frogs into the San Gabriel Mountains.
Per the zoo’s announcement on Thursday, Sept. 10, the release happened over two days in August, with 338 frogs returning to their native streams on Aug. 19, followed by another 315 on Aug. 27. Every frog was bred at the L.A. Zoo.
The milestone marks the first release to include frogs raised in the zoo’s brand-new bio-secure amphibian headstarting facility, which produced 227 of the animals. The facility is built into a renovated space at the zoo’s former Children’s Discovery Center, which is equipped with “specialized tanks and life support systems that provide optimal water quality,” allowing the animal care team to continuously oversee the frogs from the moment they hatch.
Credit: Los Angeles Zoo
According to the release, by raising the tadpoles on-site until they morph and reach a sturdier size and weight, the team can release them at a larger, more developed stage, making them less vulnerable to predators and other challenges once they’re in the wild.
“Seeing our new headstarting facility transition from a concept to a fully operational reality is a monumental milestone for the recovery of the southern mountain yellow-legged frog,” Byron Wusstig, the L.A. Zoo’s curator of ectotherms, said in a statement. “By raising these sensitive amphibians in a specialized, temperature-controlled environment, we are significantly increasing their chances of survival.”
The species has a narrow foothold in the wild. Classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the medium-sized amphibian, measuring roughly 1.5 to 3.25 inches, survives only in perennial streams in select areas of the San Gabriel, San Bernardino and San Jacinto Mountains.
Adults come in a mix of brown, yellow, gray, red or greenish-brown, often dappled with dark spots that mimic moss and lichen to help them blend in, with the telltale yellow or light-orange coloring on their legs that gives the frog its name.
Credit: Los Angeles Zoo
The two releases bring the total number of L.A. Zoo-bred frogs returned to the wild to nearly 7,000 since the Southern Mountain Yellow-Legged Frog Recovery Program began.
Led by the USGS, the program is a collaboration among numerous partners, including the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The Aquarium of the Pacific, Santa Ana Zoo, Big Bear Alpine Zoo and Birch Aquarium have since joined the effort, and the work continues this fall: later in September, about 112 tadpoles bred at the L.A. Zoo will transfer to the Santa Ana Zoo for ongoing care.
The public can see the southern mountain yellow-legged frog at the L.A. Zoo’s Living Amphibian, Invertebrate, and Reptile exhibit (LAIR) during regular operating hours.
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