Chile has launched a new effort to save Darwin’s frog, a tiny amphibian with a leaf -like skin, whose males carry the tadpoles in the mouthbags.
The initiative of the Chilean government’s climate change and sustainability committee seeks to protect habitats and breeding areas, including working with private land owners.
The goal is to discover new populations, if possible, and substantially increase the area inhabited by current populations.
The frog, originally considered a single species, is actually composed of two: the Rhinoderma darwinii (Darwin do Sul Frog), threatened with extinction, and the Rhinoderma red (Northern Darwin Frog), classified as “critically threatened” and has virtually disappeared.
The frog, which measures 3 cm, was discovered on the Chiloé Islands in southern Chile, during his trip around the world in 1834.
Forest fires, climate change, invasive species and urbanization have damaged the damp forests in southern Chile and Argentina, where Darwin’s frog normally lives.
Charif Tala, head of the Chilean Ministry of Environmental Conservation Department, said the country’s forest fragmentation has caused the number of populations in Chile and Argentina to fall to 62. Monitoring of frog populations has only begun in recent years, according to the ministry, after a dramatic decline.
Andres Valenzuela, director of a non -profit Chilean organization called Darwin’s NGO, said he expected the initiative to bring more awareness about the frog’s situation to people throughout Chile.
“We have great hope that this will allow us to improve conservation … and that the people of our country will begin to appreciate these unique and important species we have in our native forests,” said Valenzuela.
