New Data Reveals How Australia’s Threatened Reptiles and Frogs are Disappearing – and What We Have to do

Typography

Australia is home to extraordinary reptiles and frogs, from giant lace monitors to tiny alpine froglets.

Australia is home to extraordinary reptiles and frogs, from giant lace monitors to tiny alpine froglets. More than 1,100 reptiles and 250 frog species are found across the Australian continent and islands. But we are losing them.

So far, one of Australia’s reptiles has become extinct, the delicate Christmas Island forest skink. And seven frogs are thought to be lost forever, including the only two species of gastric brooding frog – famous for their ability to brood their young in the female’s stomach.

We wanted to know how are other frogs and reptiles were faring. So, for the first time, we asked frog and reptile experts to contribute to the Threatened Species Index (TSX). This index uses robust and reliable data to measure changes in the relative abundance of Australia’s threatened and near-threatened species.

Read More at: University of Queensland

Photo credit: Nicolas Rakotopare