February 18, 2008 – Earth is facing its largest mass extinction since the disappearance of the dinosaurs. From one-third to one-half of the planet’s 6,000 amphibian species – frogs and toads, salamanders and newts, and caecilians, which have thrived for 360 million years – are in danger of extinction.

To mitigate this crisis, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo has joined together with the world’s leading conservationists to name 2008 “The Year of the Frog” in hopes of raising both awareness and the critical funding needed to address the crisis. Amphibians are often called “the world’s canaries in the coal mine,” and when hundreds of species are in decline it serves as a global warning to other species.

In an effort to draw attention to the worldwide recognition of 2008 as the “Year of the Frog,” Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is holding a two-day Leap Day event. The fun-filled event will give guests an overview of the Zoo’s yearlong conservation effort while providing families an opportunity to show their love and appreciation to our froggy friends. The event will be held on Zoo grounds beginning on Leap Day, Friday, February 29 and “leaping over” to Saturday, March 1. Activities begin at 10:00 a.m. and continue until 3:00 p.m. each day. To encourage participation in this year’s Leap Day celebration, the Zoo will give FREE admission to the first 100 kids aged 3-11 that present a colored or decorated frog mask at the admission gate. A frog mask template is available to print and color from the Zoo’s website at www.cmzoo.org, click on “frog mask.”

With the event centered at the Zoo’s new Lodge at Moose Lake, activities will include a viewing of tadpoles and assorted amphibians in special tanks set up in the Lodge. Those hungry amphibians will get hungry during the day, so special feedings by Zoo staff will highlight this part of the event. Games will be set up around the lodge so kids can try their hand at placing slingshot frogs on floating lily pads, playing leapfrog, making masks and other frog art, getting a washable frog tattoo and meeting amphibian keepers from the Zoo’s Bird and Reptile House.

There will be a daily “Salamander Room” storytime and the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo Auxiliary Zoopeteers will present a special puppet show each day in the Lodge. A continuous slideshow will also present photos of some of the colorful amphibian species from around the world (don’t believe that every frog is green!) and Zoo staff will be on hand to answer guest’s questions.

All of this fun and partying has a purpose -- to bring attention to the current extinction of the world’s amphibian population. Frogs and toads, salamanders, newts and caecilians, which have thrived for 360 million years – are in danger of extinction. Half of the 6,000 amphibian species are threatened with extinction; 165 species are already extinct; and another 500 species cannot stave off extinction in the wild and require intervention outside their habitat, such as breeding in zoos like Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. The Zoo has already taken on the task of sheltering and breeding two rare Rocky Mountain species, Wyoming toads and boreal toads.

Why should you care? Amphibians play an important role in the food chain, serving as predators and prey to help maintain the delicate natural balance. They eat pest insects, which also minimizes the spread of disease, especially malaria. Toads and other amphibians' skins also excrete substances that have great promise in curing human diseases, including AIDS.

To mitigate this crisis, the world’s leading conservationists have joined together to name 2008 “The Year of the Frog.” Plans for captive breeding and the release of genetically diverse populations into the wild are underway. A broad strategy, called the Amphibian Conservation Action Plan (ACAP), will unfold through the year to protect habitat and address other environmental threats. ACAP’s most urgent initiative, the Amphibian Ark, will develop, promote, and guide short-term captive management of the most threatened amphibians, making possible the long-term survival of species for which adequate protection in the wild is not currently possible.

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