Josh's Frogs is proud to announce our 2021 Amphibian Conservation Grant Winners! 2021 was our biggest year for conservation yet, with $5500 in grant money given out to 7 amazing amphibian organizations. Meet our 2021 Amphibian Champions below:

$1,500 Grant Winner - Saving the living fossil Calyptocephalella gayi (Central Chile)

The aim of this project is to protect the ancient frog species commonly known as the Chilean Helmeted Toad. The grant will be used to fund field research, which hopes to determine population density and dynamics, threats, impacts of exotic species, develop educational conservation-based programs for people who live within the native range of C. gayi, and to develop in-situ conservation measures for this unusual frog.

$1,000 Grant Winner - Dendrobatidae Nederland - (Ranita Dorada, Colombia)

Grant monies will be used for long term, in-situ conservation of Andinobates dorisswansonae and A. tolimensis, two endangered species of poison frogs. The funds will also go towards the protection of forest guards, who have been specially trained to protect the native habitat of these animals. They have recently come under attack from poachers and illegal lumbermen, agriculture, and even the local media.

$1,000 Grant Winner - Biodiversity Research and Conservation Society ((Ramsarsite-Maipokhari, Has Pokhari, Suke Pokhari, Nepal)

The single species of salamander in Nepal (Tylototriton himalayanus) is under threat from human activities. This animal was only recently described to science and is an important indicator species in the region. Grant money will be used to form Salamander Conservation Groups at 3 known population locations, conduct conservation education concerning the salamander and its wetland environment, install trash bins and educational signing at the three known populations, and local trash pickup in native habitat.

$500 Grant Winner - Madagasikara Voakajy (Antananorivo, Madagascar)

We're helping to fund research and monitoring trips for one of Madagascar's rarest and most endangered amphibians - the Harlequin Mantella (Mantella cowanii). Found in highlands where almost all forest habitat has been lost due to human activity, this brightly colored frog is in need of help! Grant money will go towards supporting the first year of field work for the Mantella Action Plan, which will develop recommendations, guidelines, and strategies for helping these amazing frogs survive for years to come.

$500 Grant Winner - ELGON WIlDLIFE CONSERVATION ORGANIZATION (Ewco, Uganda, Africa)

Ugandans have little awareness of the need to conserve amphibians among its citizens and public education would improve the impact of conservation efforts. This project aims to promote frog conservation using Leptopelis karissimbensis as a flagship species to develop workable conservation strategies for other frog species in Uganda. Grant money would be used to help form a conservation program for the frog named above, which would serve as a model for future Ugandan conservation projects, as well as educate the citizens of Uganda about the importance of amphibians. ELGON was one of our 2020 Amphibian Conservation Grant Winners, as well.

$500 Grant Winner - Nanjing Forestry University (Nanjing, China and Southern France)

For this project, grant funding will be used to purchase a drone and support equipment for native and invasive amphibian monitoring in the south of France, as well as population surveys for a poorly known species of tree frog in China!

$500 Grant Winner - EVACC Foundation (El Valle, Panama, Central America)

This is THE amphibian conservation group in Panama, which has cooperated with US zoos to save the Panamanian Golden Frog. They also maintain a public amphibian conservation zoo and biosecure facility for captive breeding. They were vital in the creation and construction of 'frog pods', which helped save dozens of native amphibian populations. Unfortunately, their past sources of funding have dried up. They desperately need funds to survey for endangered frog species, which they can then collect and breed for conservation efforts. In the past, they have rediscovered several 'extinct' species this way. Grant money would be spent on equipment needed for a series of expeditions looking for potentially extinct species of tree frogs and Atelopus. EVACC was also one of our 2020 Amphibian Conservation Grant Winners.