AUCKLAND CITY COUNCIL

MEDIA RELEASE

9 October 2007

Hop in to Auckland Zoo for Frog Week

Auckland Zoo is celebrating National Frog Week with Cadbury’s Freddo Frog from 18 to 22 October, and offering fun activities that will give visitors the chance to discover more about these amazing amphibians.

National Frog Week (22 – 28 October) is a Department of Conservation (DOC) initiative, designed to raise public awareness of New Zealand’s four remaining native frog species, all of which are endangered.

As part of the national Freddo Frog road show, Freddo’s Lily Pad will be set up inside Auckland Zoo’s front entry plaza from 11am – 2pm daily from Thursday 18 October to Monday (Labour Day) 22 October.

Freddo Frog will be with his friends at his Lily Pad, promoting conservation of New Zealand’s native frogs.

The Lily Pad has great interactive activities, including a listening station to enable kids to find out what a frog sounds like, and a touch post to experience what a frog’s skin feels like. Every visitor to the Lily Pad will also receive a special Freddo Frog educational booklet, and kids can join in with other fun froggy activities each day such as leapfrog races, “Crazy Frog” dancing, or having their face painted green for the day.

Frog experts estimate there are over 5500 species of frogs in the world (more than all mammals combined), and approximately 30 per cent are threatened with extinction. The dramatic decline in frog populations is due to a range of factors - including habitat loss, infectious diseases, pollution and chemical contamination, over-harvesting, and climate change.

Like many frog species, New Zealand’s native frogs are threatened with extinction, and have had to contend with habitat change, introduced pests and, more recently, the effects of the Chytrid fungal disease.

Auckland Zoo’s native frog research centre is home to New Zealand’s smallest native frog, the Archey’s frog which grows to just 37mm. While it is not possible to go inside, the centre features informative displays, and visitors can also view a documentary about New Zealand frogs. However, you can get up close to some Australian green and gold bell frogs at the zoo's children's area, Kidzone, so be sure to hop along to this fun part of the zoo.

The zoo has worked closely with DOC to establish a captive group of 60 Archey’s frogs - to act as an insurance population against further declines in the wild. This population is also providing valuable information on captive management, and the potential for breeding additional frogs to supplement wild populations.

For more information about Frog Week at the zoo, and the zoo’s captive management and research into native frogs, visit wwwaucklandzoo.co.nz

ENDS

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