Australia is fortunate to have had a rich of variety in frogs. With over 200 species we have most diverse frog populations in the world and 92% of these are found nowhere else but in Australia. There are only 6 species of frog thought to be Bellarine Peninsula with a wider diversity to the north of Geelong.

For 190 million years, the ancestors of modern frogs have lived, looking much the same as they do today however, the future may not be so bright for our frogs. Ten frog species have disappeared from Australia since the 1980s, 27 frog species are considered at threat and a further 14 species are of concern due to the fact we know very little about them. Our frogs are disappearing at an alarming rate. There is a great deal of speculation as to why, but sadly the actual causes of the decline remains unknown.

So why do we think frogs dying out? Scientists have a long list of potential causes. These work individually and in combination to impact on frog populations and include: climate changes, including global warming and thinning of the ozone layer; the destruction of frog habitat by humans; predation by cats and native species. Pollution is a very real reason. Frogs absorb water through skin, they're very vulnerable to water pollutants like pesticides and acid rain. Scientists think that a newly discovered skin fungus, which slowly suffocates frogs by attacking the skin through which they breathe, is attaching frogs, which are weakened by environmental stresses.

Frogs are considered "biological indicators," of the health of the environment. This is because they are among the first animals to be affected by degradation of the environment. As a worst case scenario their dwindling numbers may be a warning to us that our planet is becoming unlivable. No matter what's behind it, the disappearance of frogs is cause for concern. With a combination of conservation and study, we can help keep frogs hopping for another 190 million years. So what can we do?

The Bellarine Peninsula Community Frog Monitoring program is being set-up and co-ordinated by the Swan Bay Integrated Catchment Management Committee, in association with Alcoa, the Amphibian Research Centre (ARC), the Commonwealth Government's Natural Heritage Trust Program, and with assistance from Melbourne Water.

Alcoa of Australia, as part of the Alcoa Frog Watch program have funded Gerry Marantelli from the Amphibian Research Centre to provide community training and the analysis and authentication of the taped data. The monitoring process is based on one developed by Melbourne Water. The data collection sheets and electronic data storage spread-sheets are based on those developed by Melbourne Water. We would like to thank them for their support.

The goals of the project are simple:

1. Collect long-term data on the species of frogs living on the Bellarine Peninsula. 2. Collect long-term data on the abundance of each frog species on the Bellarine Peninsula. 3. To facilitate improved community interest and knowledge about frog and frog monitoring.

The SBICMC have put together "Frog Monitoring Kits" for the participants thanks to Natural Heritage Trust Funding Program. Each kit contains:

1. A return post mailing bag, 2. this introduction, 3. a 60 minute recording tape, 4. three (3) Data sheets.

The monitoring will take place by recording frog calls at fixed sites over a number of years - in the autumn and spring of each year. The SBICMC will provide tapes, data sheets and prepaid envelopes to return your tape recordings. Once collected the data from the data sheets and the tapes will be posted off to the Amphibian Research Centre for authentication and checking, a process that takes around 2-3 months.

The SBICMC will pass on the personal feed back on the frog data from the Amphibian Research Centre to each community group or individual participating.

The data collected will greatly enhance the documented knowledge of the species richness and abundance of frogs. Hopefully, we may document the rarer species such as the Growling Grass Frog or find species that has not been recorded on the Bellarine Peninsula before. In time will send the data sets to the City of Greater Geelong, Borough of Queenscliff and Department of Sustainability and Environment for their awareness, use and inclusion into their biodiversity mapping schemes.

If you would like to get involved or for further information contact:

Steve Smithyman, Swan Bay Project Officer Phone/fax 52298432 Mobile 0417 231853 email: smithman@iprimus.com.au