This is film footage from the BBC of the Panamanian Golden Frog (Atelopus varius zeteki) narrated by David Attenborough. What more can I say about the Golden Frog? (or Sir David Attenborough for that matter!) These images speak for themselves. This video shows males battling for a female. When the male finds the female, they will go into amplexus. Sometimes, the male can be riding on the female’s back for a few weeks to up to a couple of months. The female will lay eggs in a stream among rocks so they will not get washed away. The male will fertilize these eggs while she lays. The eggs are in strands like most toads.
We are very fortunate to have 5 Panamanian Golden Frogs at the Seneca Park Zoo. We had a pair go into amplexus at the end of December. No eggs this year… Hopefully, we will have a better chance next year.
Check out the size of this extinct frog recently discovered in Madagascar! This animal looks much like the South American Horned frogs. The Horned frogs are known for having great camouflage. They bury themselves in leaf litter with just their eyes protruding. When a prey item comes near, they jump out and ingest the prey whole. What an appetite! Of course, you may get hungry waiting for your food to come to you!
This piece was filmed in El Valle, Panama where Houston Zoo (http://www.houstonzoo.org/en/cms/?2149) spearheaded an effort with support from other Zoos to create EVACC or El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center. The center was created to quarantine some of Panama’s native amphibians to treat and protect them from the Chytrid fungus. Amphibian chytrid or BD (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) has run rampant throughout Central America, decimating amphibian populations in it’s path. The fungus causes a disease in most amphibians called chytridiomycosis. The disease damages their skin and can also harm the mouth parts in tadpoles. The purpose of EVACC is to establish assurance colonies of breeding groups of amphibians. This may be their only hope in avoiding extinction.
This year the Seneca Park Zoo is celebrating the Year of the Frog – a promotional campaign to raise awareness of the current global amphibian crisis. Zookeeper John Adamski will keep you up to date on all of the frogs in the Seneca Park Zoo collection including our Panamanian Golden Frogs, Lemur Leaf Frogs and so many more. Learn why frogs matter, what you can do to help, and how your Seneca Park Zoo is an essential friend of the frogs.
Check back soon for more information and Year of the Frog events happening at your Seneca Park Zoo.
