FROG BLOG MANCHESTER

Last week I unexpectedly bumped into one of our past vivarium volunteers, Andrew Johnson. It’s several years ago since Andrew worked in the department, but he’s developed such an interest in frogs that after studying for his Zoology Degree here at Manchester he took off to Borneo in search of some very cool species. Chatting with him brought memories of finding unusual Asian frogs flooding back.

It’s been a while since I first went to Asia to look for frogs, but my memories of finding some amazing species are still as vivid as ever. From the minute I arrived on the Continent I could hardly contain my excitement, and I remember waking early the very first morning to witness a very beautiful rising red sun before heading towards the rainforest. The opportunity to enter a new rainforest environment where I had never been before or had any idea of the frog calls absolutely thrilled me to bits ))

Apart from finding some amazing  snakes during that trip I found some really incredible frogs, from the large tree-dwelling gliding frog Rhacophorous nigropalmatus, to the strange looking ground-dweller Leptobrachium hendricksoni (pictured). Below are a few photos of just some of the species I came across during my time researching frog DNA in Thailand . These were found mainly at night in the darkness of the rainforest, where I am always in my element )) If you have ever been in the rainforest at night, turned off your torch, and just stood there silently in the darkness amidst the smells and sounds of nature you will know exactly what I mean – you become nature, you become at one with the forest, you feel truly alive.

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I would love to go back to Asia again one day, and the rainforests of Borneo sound like a true froglovers paradise (I somewhat feel a plan forming )) Andrew told me that during his 3 months trip to the island he found and photographed a huge variety of different species, many rare, and some presumed as yet undescribed. New species of animals are being found in this wonderful area of the world every year, but sadly many are also probably disappearing before ever even being discovered. If you would like to hear more about the conservation of the rainforest in Borneo, or indeed view Andrew’s super website where you can see all the species he found and photographed, please follow the links below.

Find out which frog species were found by Andrew on his trip to Borneo and see his wonderful photographs

Find out how important it is to conserve the rainforest at the Heart of Borneo and what you can do to help

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