Panamanian Golden Frogs

This was a day where my faith background and wildlife volunteer experiences intersected in, what was for me, an unforgettable event.

Some background on the species:

Panamanian Golden Frogs are critically endangered. They are endemic to Panama. The species is believed to be extinct in the wild and roughly 80% of the population decline is due to chytridiomycosis. Which is a chytrid fungus that causes disease in amphibians. There are roughly 1,500 Panamanian Golden Frogs left and they all reside in zoos.

How I became aware of these frogs:

When I volunteered at the Abilene Zoo I got to spend a day in the reptile house. I was able to go with the zookeeper as he checked on all the exhibits. When we got to the Mixed Frog Exhibit he pointed out these two frogs and told me how they were critically endangered and placed together to mate and help grow the population and stabilize their status. The female had been added recently and had not been showing any interest in the male. I did not think much more about these frogs until I went to visit the zoo with my family a few months later.

My exciting experience:

I went to show them these frogs because I thought it was so cool that we had some of the last known members of the species. When I walked up to the tank I immediately started freaking out because I was seeing a major event take place. An event that people had been hoping for. An event that could rewrite the destiny of the population (to be a bit extreme).

I knew that I was seeing the frogs mate because I had just learned how frogs mate in my zoology class!! Everything was coming together, my class lectures, my volunteer experience, and the admiration I had for all of nature because God had created them intentionally and said that it was good.

I know it may be weird to think, but at that moment I was just struck by how awesome God is. It was a gift from God that I was seeing because He created these creatures and made their bodies work in the exact way that they do. Nothing I was seeing was by mistake and to me what I was seeing was a miracle! The species is slowly growing in size at the many zoos they reside at. And maybe one day the species will not be critically endangered anymore, in some measure due to the two frogs I saw at the Abilene Zoo.

Blessings and calm tides,

BK