Volunteers sought for FrogWatch, a local amphibian census

Connecticut”™s Beardsley Zoo, the Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk and Yale”™s Peabody Museum of Natural History are collaborating on “FrogWatch,” an endeavor that encourages volunteer “citizen scientists” to conduct a frog census in local area wetlands.

As part of this program, volunteers will work with experts from the three organizations to learn about local frog species, then visit wetlands once or twice a week for about 15 minutes each night this spring and summer. The watch begins a half hour after sunset and observations are reported to a national online database to contribute to amphibian conservation efforts. FrogWatch coordinators at each facility keep up to date on data results for participants.

This year, training will be presented live online for sessions on Feb. 23 and March 8, both at 7:00 p.m., and the final session will be offered in person on March 16 at 7:00 p.m. at Connecticut”™s Beardsley Zoo.

“FrogWatch USA is a wonderful way for us to engage a new generation of people interested in preserving animal habitats and conservation,” explained Jim Knox, education curator at Connecticut”™s Beardsley Zoo. “This program demonstrates how we can all play a part in protecting wildlife.”

Photo of a gray tree frog courtesy of FrogWatch