Panamanian golden frog [SEP] parent taxon
Panamanian golden frog
The Panamanian golden frog ("Atelopus zeteki") is a species of toad endemic to Panama. Panamanian golden frogs inhabit the streams along the mountainous slopes of the Cordilleran cloud forests of west-central Panama. While the IUCN lists it as critically endangered, it may in fact have been extinct in the wild since 2007. Individuals have been collected for breeding in captivity in a bid to preserve the species. The alternative common name, Zetek's golden frog, and the epithet "zeteki" both commemorate
a stop-gap measure. This was one of several conservation efforts covered in Elizabeth Kolbert's "". Over 300 toads were kept in the so-called "golden frog hotel" and treated to daily cleansing rinses, 24-hour room service, and exotic lunches of specialty crickets until space could be made available in the EVACC.
Conservation Experiment.
Prior to the spread of the "Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis" fungus into Panamanian golden frog habitat, conservation organizations collected Panamanian golden frogs and placed them in captive survival assurance colonies. The