Rare frog community discovered
Green and Golden Bell Frog - image Olympic Organising Committee
A rare community of Green and Golden Bell Frogs has been saved from a gas pipeline digging operation in NSW.
The frogs, which have become the unofficial mascot of the Sydney Olympic games, were found during an ecological assessment along the proposed extension of a gas pipeline out of Canberra.
Ecologist Bruce Mullins, who is based at Charles Sturt University, said that while discovering any endangered species in any area created excitement, finding this particular population of the frog was particularly significant.
The population is of a mixed age and was found in the Southern Tablelands. The frog was thought to have disappeared from the area, the last sighting made in 1981.
"Rediscovering this species gives hope to wildlife managers that other remnant Green and Golden Bell Frog populations may exist in the tablelands, and that the populations found may be resistant to some of the diseases that have been attributed to their decline", Mr Mullins said.
The company conducting the assessment, AGL, said it would review the proposed route of the pipeline to avoid the area, and said it would use low impact construction techniques if there was a need to pass close to the habitat.
