Last month, volunteers and conservation experts gathered in Wyoming’s Laramie Basin to release hundreds of critically endangered Wyoming toads to their wild native habitat. 200 of the toads were raised at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, including 10 little toads that CMZoo fans and guests named and followed online as they prepared for their big job: helping restore their species, which was once considered extinct in the wild.

Jeff Baughman, field conservation coordinator at CMZoo, has led the effort for the Zoo’s contribution to this multi-organization effort since 2008, along with partners from U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and others. The year-round effort to breed, raise and release the toads culminates each year in June, as he helps the toads – and thousands of tadpoles – make their debut in four designated reintroduction sites.

For many years, 1-year-old toads and tadpoles have been released each summer. This year, for the first time, 2-year-old toads were also released. This summer, CMZoo released 200 adult toads, bringing to total ever released to 1,425. The Zoo has released 46,651 tadpoles (yes, they count every single tadpole!), and 215 metamorphs and young toads over the years.

Baughman’s goal is for toads to breed and survive in the wild. The hope has been for the 1-year-old toads to overwinter and breed the next year. The 2-year-olds released this year could potentially reproduce this summer, so even if they don’t make it through the year, their offspring could.

“We have seen wild egg strands during surveys and releases, which is always so exciting,” said Baughman. “Maybe next year we’ll see even more egg strands, or we’ll see 1-year-old toads that hatched in the wild this summer. We’re going to continue testing ways to help more toads survive from year to year.”

Some of the toads are microchipped, so that any toads found in the wild can be scanned to see where they were born. Ten of those microchipped toads have names – pretty unusual for an endangered animal intended for wild release, but CMZoo social media fans chose a name theme for the ten tiny toadlets born last summer. Jim, Pam, Dwight, Michael, Phyllis, Oscar, Kevin, Angela, Kelly, and Stanley are now playing the most important roles of their lives, supporting their ecosystem or maybe, hopefully, bringing a new generation of toads to the Laramie Basin.

Each year on the day of the release, the team from CMZoo meets in the early morning hours to load the toads, already safely stored in tubs of cool and misty moss, from the conservation center into a van. That van will also transport CMZoo keepers, volunteers, board members and supporters on a nearly 4-hour drive to the meetup spot at a local fairground parking lot.

That’s where teams coordinate, learn how to safely handle the delicate toads, and pick up their waterproof boots before splitting up to see the toads off into the wild. After another drive, way off the main highway, and traipsing through knee-high waters, thick mud and mosquito breeding grounds, the teams arrive at the edge of a beautiful, crystal clear pond that’s brimming with life.

Pelicans, dragonflies, blackbirds, chorus frogs and more make their summer home in the basin, surrounded by the Medicine Bow and Laramie Mountains in the distance. In between steps – painstakingly placed to protect the well camouflaged toads hopping through the tall, wet grasses – the team stops to remember that wild places like this are well worth early mornings, boots full of pond water, mosquito bites and Denver traffic. Not to mention the daily dedication CMZoo’s conservation team and their partners have for the effort year-round.

“Being out in the Laramie Basin to release toads every year, and getting to bring volunteers who haven’t been before, really cements my passion for this ongoing effort,” said Baughman. “This is the only place in the world Wyoming toads live, and it’s up to us to help them recover. I always try to take a moment to reflect on the year we spent preparing these toads for release. It gets me excited for the year ahead.”

In addition to the toads released each year, CMZoo makes a second summer trip to the basin to release tadpoles to the wild. The toads and tadpoles are vital to the health of the ecosystem, serving as insect control, food sources for other creatures, and indicators of the health of their homes.

“I used to hear people asking why we put so much effort into saving a toad,” said Baughman. “Amphibians are facing the biggest mass extinction since the dinosaurs, and we’re their biggest hope. Without amphibians, insect populations would become out of control, and birds and other animals would lack an important food source.”

Pesticides, drought and a deadly amphibian fungus are the leading causes for the worldwide decline in amphibians. Chytrid fungus causes a skin infection that prevents amphibians from absorbing water and breathing through their skin, a process called cutaneous respiration. This often leads to organ failure and death.

For a long time, the approach has been to look for ways to address the fungus. Water adventurers can prevent the spread by disinfecting fishing gear, kayaks and other equipment used in water. But now, Chytrid is present in most wild waters, so Baughman and fellow scientists are looking for ways to help the toads become resilient to the fungus, or even adapt to it. That means intentionally exposing them to it.

“We think the tadpoles that hatch in Chytrid-infested waters might be more resilient to it than those born in Chytrid-free environments,” said Baughman. “Of course, introducing Chytrid to our breed-and-release facilities would pose a huge risk, because of the potential for it to wipe out entire populations. So, we need more wild-born toads to test the theory for us. In the meantime, we’ll continue building the numbers in the best way we know at this point, which is in breed-and-release facilities like ours, while we continue to test new methods.”

None of this work is possible without the support of CMZoo guests. Through CMZoo’s Quarters for Conservation program, 75¢ of every admission is dedicated to frontline conservation efforts like this, so guests can enjoy a day on the mountain with their favorite animals and support important programs dedicated to saving wildlife and wild places. Since 2008, when Q4C started, CMZoo’s guests and members have contributed more than $4 million to conservation projects worldwide.

Back to The Waterhole

This summer, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo conservation keepers introduced ten tiny tadpoles to the world. The ‘poster tadpoles’ of their endangered species, the Wyoming toad, morphed into toadlets within weeks. At the end of July, CMZoo fans submitted naming ideas for the ten amphibian siblings on the Zoo’s social media channels, and one theme was a big hit in ‘the office’ at the Zoo. The toads were named Jim, Pam, Michael, Dwight, Stanley, Kelly, Phyllis, Angela, Oscar and Kevin. Since then, they have fine-tuned their hunting skills and are growing big and strong in the conservation center above Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

In the 90s, Wyoming toads were considered extinct in the wild, and only one population remained in human care. That population became the foundation for a breeding program in nine zoological and governmental facilities, including CMZoo, producing tadpoles and toadlets for reintroduction to the wild.

Over its 26-year commitment to Wyoming toad recovery, CMZoo’s conservation team has released 44,695 tadpoles and 1,510 toads into the wild. Next summer, these ten toads and hundreds of others born at CMZoowill take their first hops into the wild as part of this ongoing conservation effort.

“Each summer, we travel to the Laramie Basin, in Wyoming, to release toads and tadpoles to their wild native habitats,” said Jeff Baughman, field conservation coordinator at CMZoo. “We also prepare toads for breeding in the summer, and we welcome new tadpoles to their tanks. It is a really exciting and busy time, but our winter efforts are also important.”

For the conservation team, winter and spring are all about growing healthy toads and preparing them for the next summer’s release. Of course, educating and inspiring the public to care for toads is a year-round priority.

“Toad conservation may not be front-of-mind for most people mid-winter, but we’re always working to help this native species recover,” said Baughman. “Toads are worth saving. They play a vital role at the center of the prairie environment as the best bug control available and as sustenance for migrating birds and native animals in search of food. If the toads don’t survive, the whole ecosystem suffers.”

Amphibians worldwide are facing mass extinction due to a pandemic caused by the chytrid fungus. Chytrid fungus results in a skin infection that hinders amphibians’ ability to breathe and absorb water. This often leads to organ failure and death. Disinfecting outdoor recreation gear used in and near water can help stop the spread of the deadly chytrid fungus. Outdoorspeople who explore waterways can leave their gear in a hot car or the sun for about 3 hours to kill the fungus and prevent transferring it to another body of water.

In winter, Baughman and his colleagues also continue year-round work on the Wyoming toad Species Survival Plan (SSP). SSP managers make recommendations on which breeding toads should be paired next year to achieve the greatest possible genetic diversity for the population, many of which will be released into the wild and some of which will stay in human care to contribute to continued breeding efforts.

A key to making those breeding recommendations, and giving each toad the best chance at wild survival, is identifying each individual. The team can ID each toad by its unique wart patterns. Since those patterns can change as a toad grows in size, each toad is microchipped.

“By scanning each microchip, we have a more reliable way to track important data for each toad,” said Baughman. “For example, we can see if Michael is gaining weight or if Pam is doing well in artificial hibernation prior to being released, without depending totally on their wart patterns. They get their chips around 6 to 8 months of age. The ten we’ve been following on social media and many others in the cohort recently got theirs.”

In addition to tracking important data while the toads are in human care, the microchips also allow conservation teams to check up on the toads once they’re released. During releases, the teams will scan toads they find in the wild to see how many were bred in human care and released into the wild versus a number of toads without microchips, which biologists can safely assume were either born in the wild or grew from the tadpoles released from human care.

“The goal is to encourage wild breeding,” said Baughman. “It’s not sustainable for us to dream of continuing to release thousands of toads and tadpoles every year f We have to discover what the toads need to breed and survive naturally in the wild.”

So far, age seems to have a lot to do with it. In past years, conservationists focused on releasing ‘headstart toads,’ aptly named for their headstart on life. These toads are released into the wild at one year of age, instead of as tadpoles or toadlets. Their bigger size and self-sufficiency, gained from their first year in a safe environment in human care, meant they were less likely to become fish food. At a year old, the toads are not typically mature and ready to breed so a new strategy will be tested.

“This year, we’re going to start releasing two-year-old headstart toads,” said Baughman. “Conservation is a science, and science is all about experimenting to find better ways of doing things. We think that two-year-old toads might be more likely to breed.”

Because Baughman and his colleagues have seen a small increase in wild Wyoming toad egg strands, they know toads are breeding, but they want to further increase wild breeding events. Rather than completely change their approach to release only two-year-old toads, they will also continue to release one-year-olds, including Jim, Pam, Michael, Dwight, Stanley, Kelly, Phyllis, Angela, Oscar and Kevin, in 2023. We will continue to give updates during the spring as their summer release date approaches.

Just by visiting CMZoo, members and guests are making an impact to help toads and other species. Through CMZoo’s Quarters for Conservation program, 75¢ of every admission is dedicated to frontline conservation efforts like this, so guests can enjoy a day on the mountain with their favorite animals and support important programs dedicated to saving wildlife and wild places. Since 2008, when Q4C started, CMZoo’s guests and members have contributed more than $4 million to conservation projects worldwide.

Back to The Waterhole

Jim, Pam, Michael, Dwight, Angela, Phyllis, Stanley, Kelly, Oscar and Kevin, our ten Wyoming toadlets, have been fine-tuning their hunting skills up in CMZoo’s conservation center. These critically endangered toads, and many other amphibians, have a special way of distracting and attracting their meals: toe tapping. It brings a whole new meaning to the phrase, “dancing for your dinner.”

We’re taking you on a wild adventure this year as we follow these ten individuals throughout their year in our conservation center and then as they’re released to the wild. The little toads have a big job: helping their critically endangered species recover in the wild waterways of Wyoming.

Why give a hop? Toads are worth saving. They play a vital role at the center of the prairie environment as the best bug control available and as sustenance for migrating birds and native mammals in search of food. If the toads don’t survive, the whole ecosystem suffers. They’re also what’s known as an indicator species, meaning they indicate the overall health of their ecosystem – and it’s in desperate need of attention.

Amphibians worldwide are facing mass extinction due to a pandemic known as the Chytrid fungus. Chytrid fungus causes a skin infection that hinders amphibians’ ability to breathe and absorb water. This often leads to organ failure and death. But, thanks to zoos like CMZoo, these hoppers stand a chance.

Over its 26-year commitment to Wyoming toad recovery, CMZoo’s conservation team has released 44,695 tadpoles and 1,510 toads into the wild. Next summer, these ten toads, and hundreds of their siblings currently growing up in the CMZoo conservation center, will take their first hops into the wild as part of this ongoing conservation effort.

Follow our Facebook playlist A Year in the Life of a Wyoming Toad

The soft serenade of Wyoming toad mating calls will soon echo through the hallways of the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo conservation center, as Field Conservation Coordinator Jeff Baughman welcomes ten breeding pairs of critically endangered amphibians back from 38 days of hibernation.

“It’s a busy time of year for us,” said Baughman, who has been intimately involved in Wyoming toad recovery at CMZoo since 2008. “The next several weeks are really crucial as we help bring this species back from the brink of extinction. Our adult toads are waking up from hibernation and moving into their breeding suites. Soon, we’ll have our hands full, welcoming thousands of their babies into our care.”

It may sound dramatic, but we believe it is. Wyoming toads are listed as “EW” or “Extinct in the Wild,” on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

Why give a hop? Toads are worth saving. They play a vital role at the center of the prairie environment, as the best bug control available and as sustenance for migrating birds and native mammals in search of food. If the toads don’t survive, the whole ecosystem suffers. They’re also what’s known as an indicator species, meaning they indicate the overall health of their ecosystem – and it’s in desperate need of attention.

Amphibians worldwide are facing mass extinction due to a pandemic known as the Chytrid fungus. Chytrid fungus causes a skin infection that hinders amphibians’ ability to breathe and absorb water. This often leads to organ failure and death. But, thanks to zoos like CMZoo, these hoppers stand a chance.

Over its 26-year commitment to the cause, CMZoo’s conservation team has released more than 41,629 tadpoles and nearly 1,444 toads into the wild. Next week, 66 more one-year-old toads will take their first hops into the wild to join them in the Laramie Basin of Wyoming.

Although the releases happen each June, the team works year-round to prepare for the toads’ and tadpoles’ hopeful sendoff. The yearly process begins by simulating hibernation for the toads. They’re placed in moss-lined containers inside a hibernaculum, which reduces their temperature slowly over a few days to 38 degrees Fahrenheit. The toads, very much alive, stay at that temperature for 35 days, receiving periodic checks from the conservation team who mist and monitor the sleeping beauties.

Over the last few days of their low-temp slumber party, the hibernaculum’s temperature is slowly raised back to around 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and they start to wake up. The cycle triggers their instinct to breed, as they would in the wild after winter, and that’s when the magic happens.

“We bring them out of the hibernaculum and place genetically desirable breeding pairs into tanks,” said Baughman. “We also play audio tracks from the Laramie Basin, which include Wyoming toad breeding calls, so the environment is just right. It only takes about a week for fertilized eggs to develop into tadpoles.”

The team will release thousands of those tadpoles into ponds and streams in Wyoming at the end of June. Some of the tadpoles hatched this year will stay at the Zoo, under the care of the conservation team, to grow into yearling toads before being released the following summer. The tadpoles held back get a yearlong head start at the Zoo, hence the term ‘headstart toads.’ New this year, others will be held back for two years to see if wild reproduction increases with more sexually mature toads being released. Clean Chytrid-free water, climate controls and plenty of yummy meals of crickets and cockroaches give them all a better chance at surviving in the wild. Not to mention, they won’t be on the menu themselves. Most importantly, it means there are more toads ready to breed in the wild because they will have survived and reached reproductive maturity at two years old.

When they’re about eight months old, each toad is microchipped, so when the team goes back to the release location, they can track survivorship or prevalence of the Chytrid fungus. The microchips also help the team identify and monitor individuals during their stay at CMZoo.

Amphibian allies don’t need a hibernaculum or a fresh supply of crickets to help these little guys. Disinfecting outdoor recreation gear used in and near water can stop the spread of the deadly Chytrid fungus. Leaving your fishing or kayaking gear in a hot car or the sun to dry it out for 3 hours, will kill the fungus and prevent water enthusiasts from accidentally transferring it to another body of water.

“Recovering a species definitely takes time,” said Baughman. “But we’ve seen some promising signs that the toads are starting to bounce back – or hop back – in the wild. During field surveys, we’ve seen wild egg strands, which means toads or tadpoles that have been released, or the offspring of released toads, are starting to do the work for us. As a conservationist, there’s nothing you want more than to be out of work.”

This year, Baughman and his team are taking CMZoo followers on a wild real-time adventure, following a group of tadpoles throughout their year of development in the CMZoo conservation center. We’ll share the successes and the struggles these tiny creatures face, even in the safety of their nursery under the care of our team.

“We have a pretty good record of raising tadpoles to adulthood, but they really struggle in the wild,” said Baughman. “In the wild, only about four of every thousand tadpoles makes it to maturity, and that’s on a good year. On a bad year, only about two survive to breeding age, on average.”

Starting in early June, tune into CMZoo’s social channels, on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, to get closer than ever to ten little tadpoles. Watch in awe as eggs turn into tadpoles. Be mesmerized by metamorphosis, as they grow legs and absorb their tails, earning the title of toadlet. Root for them as they learn to hunt and grow into dime-sized defenders of their species. Then, follow along as they go through the year-long preparation for their eventual wild release in June 2023. We’ll keep you posted.

Back to The Waterhole
 

June is an exciting time in the Laramie Basin of Wyoming. Every year, our dedicated team of conservationists travels at the crack of dawn to this special place to release toads they’ve been raising for a year, and tadpoles recently hatched at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. Earlier this month, they released 220 ‘headstart’ toads and this week released 5,638 tadpoles into the basin’s waters, celebrating 25 years of saving this species once thought to be extinct.

Why care about toads? They need our help. Amphibians are important members of their ecosystems. They’re also known as indicator species, which means they indicate the overall health of their habitat and its other residents.

“Toads and other amphibians play a vital role in the middle of the food chain,” said Jeff Baughman, CMZoo field conservation coordinator, who has been intimately involved in CMZoo’s role in the multi-zoo effort to help Wyoming toads recover since 2008. “They help control insect populations and feed larger animals, like birds, fish and mammals. Without toads, many species would go hungry and insects could get out of control, wreaking havoc on plant life and, in turn, waterways.”

Amphibians worldwide are facing mass extinction due to a pandemic known as the Chytrid fungus. Chytrid fungus causes a skin infection that hinders amphibians’ ability to breathe and absorb water. This often leads to organ failure and death. But, thanks to zoos like CMZoo, these hoppers stand a chance.

The yearly process begins by simulating hibernation for the toads. They’re placed in moss-lined containers inside a hibernaculum, which reduces their temperature slowly over a few days to 38 degrees Fahrenheit. The toads stay at that temperature for 35 days, receiving periodic checks from the conservation team who mist and monitor the sleeping beauties.

Over the final few days of their comfy freezer slumber party, the toads’ temperatures are slowly raised and they start to wake up. The cycle triggers their instinct to breed, as they would in the wild after winter, and that’s when the magic happens.

“We bring them out of the hibernaculum and place breeding pairs into tanks,” said Baughman. “We also play audio tracks from the Laramie Basin, which include Wyoming toad breeding calls, so the environment is just right. It only takes about a week for fertilized eggs to develop into tadpoles. We had 10 breeding pairs this year and nine of them laid egg strands.”

Some of the tadpoles born this year will stay at the Zoo, under the care of the conservation team, to grow into yearling toads before being released the following summer. The tadpoles held back get a yearlong head start at the Zoo, hence the term ‘headstart toads.’ Clean Chytrid fungus-free water, climate controls and plenty of crickets and cockroaches to eat in our safe conservation barn give them a better chance at surviving in the wild. Most importantly, it means there are more toads breeding in the wild because they will have survived and reached sexual maturity at a year old.

Over the next year, each toad is microchipped, so when the team goes back, they can track any trends that need to be addressed as breeding continues. The microchips also help the team identify and monitor individuals during their stay at CMZoo. Recognizing individuals with microchips also allows the team to appropriately administer hormones, which encourage them to breed once they’re freed.

Over this quarter-century commitment, CMZoo’s conservation team has released more than 40,000 tadpoles and nearly 1,400 toads into the wild.

“It’s a really fulfilling time of year, because we take care of these guys year-round so they can support their species,” said Baughman. “When we travel to Wyoming, see other toads in the wild and see this year’s headstart toads hop away into the wild, it makes our meticulous work all worth it.”

Toad lovers don’t need a hibernaculum and year-round dedication to help. Disinfecting outdoor recreation gear used in and near water can stop the spread of the deadly Chytrid fungus. Using a diluted bleach solution to clean fishing or kayaking gear, or leaving that gear in a hot car, will kill the fungus and prevent water enthusiasts from accidentally transferring it to another body of water.

Visiting the Zoo is another way to help. Every visit to CMZoo is conservation in action. Through CMZoo’s Quarters for Conservation program, by which 75¢ of every admission is dedicated to frontline conservation efforts like this, guests can enjoy a day on the mountain with their favorite animals and support important programs dedicated to saving wildlife and wild places. Since 2008, when Q4C started, CMZoo’s guests and members have contributed $3.4 million to conservation projects worldwide.

Back to The Waterhole