STRAWBERRY RESERVOIR (News4Utah) – Utah’s Hogle Zoo and the Department of Natural Resources recruits volunteers to survey our population of Boreal Toad. The toad is of critical concern in the state due to declining population.
Volunteers, or citizen scientists, catch the toads, measure them, and track them using a small monitoring chip from year to year in order to monitor the species. The toads are being attacked by the chytrid fungus, an infection brought from one body of water to another by contaminated boats, shoes, or pets. The fungus gives the toad a rash, a deadly condition for an animal that breaths through it’s skin.
Anybody can be a citizen scientist, and the Hogle Zoo has provided an easy way to help if you’re ever out in nature and see an amphibian. With the Amphibians of Utah app, you can identify and GPS tag the location of your find; all data goes to help wildlife managers track and maintain species populations.
Volunteers can also participate in multi-day animal survey’s through the Hogle Zoo, simply fil out an application on their website.
