Backyard ‘frog hotels’ hoped to help species recover from East Gippsland bushfires
30 August 2022
Published by: https://www.abc.net.au
AUSTRALIA – Ecologists are urging people to build “frog hotels” in their backyards to support frog species in East Gippsland.
More than half of the region was burnt during the 2019-2020 bushfires, forcing many frogs to move to urban areas due to the loss of habitat.
East Gippsland Catchment Management Authority (EGCMA) bush monitoring and engagement officer Bryce Watts-Parker said backyards were a lifeline for frogs.
“We’ve been seeing quite a lot of frogs in people’s backyards because that’s where there’s unburnt vegetation, there’s lots of food and people make that habitat for them,” Mr Watts-Parker said.
“[They’ve] allowed frogs to not only survive the fires, but then also repopulate and move out into the surrounding environment.”
Recreating habitat
EGCMA is promoting frog hotels to people in the region, to construct a temporary habitat for frogs in areas lacking wetlands.
The structures can be built using a water-tight container or pot, soil, native fern species and PVC pipes, in a way that replicates the natural environment.
The ferns help to create a moist climate while the pipes provide shelter for frogs.
The hotels are aimed at frogs with greater climbing capabilities including the green and golden bell frog, brown tree frog, Peron’s tree frog, southern bell frog, whistling tree frog and the screaming tree frog.
Far East Gippsland is unique in that frogs from New South Wales and other parts of Victoria also frequent the region.
“The frog hotels create a habitat that allows frogs to take refuge throughout the day, so it provides a moist microclimate so when it’s hot frogs have somewhere nice and cool and safe to be in,” Mr Watts-Parker said.
“It also provides protection from predators that might be out and about like kookaburras and potentially household pets as well.”
Involving the community
EGCMA acting CEO Bec Hemming said the project aimed to increase community awareness about the role of frogs in the environment.
“It’s a way of getting community involved and showing community that frogs are really important for our waterways,” she said.
Mr Watts-Parker said frogs were used as biological indicators to assess the quality of waterways as they reacted to pollution, a lack of vegetation and chemicals.
“Frogs are generally considered a bit of a canary in the coal mine. If something is starting to go wrong, you’ll notice that the frog populations disappear,” he said.
Although the bushfires ravaged frog habitats, populations have recovered due to high rainfall in the region that has accelerated breeding.
Far East Gippsland receives about 1000 mm of rainfall annually.
“Frog populations have been recovering really well after the fires, their numbers have been exploding,” Mr Watts-Parker said.
“This can be due to the fact that we’ve had a lot more water and also a lot more food available to them.”
EGCMA is also encouraging locals to monitor frogs and other wildlife using the iNaturalist app.
The app allows users to photograph animals and upload them to the server, where they can be identified and used for research.
“We’re hoping to also … encourage people to engage with citizen science with a variety of other species like birds and turtles … all species that are really important to our waterways,” Mr Watts-Parker said.
