A species of endangered tree frog that once lived in Ontario has been considered lost.
In October of last year, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) submitted an assessment to the federal government recommending that the Blanchard’s cricket frog be reclassified as extirpated, meaning it no longer exists in Canada.
The two-to-three-centimetre, rough-skinned frog is known for its raspy mating call, which sounds like the clicking of two pebbles. While the species can still be found in the U.S., there hadn’t been a recorded sighting in Canada since 1977. At that time, the species could be found in Point Pelee National Park and Pelee Island in southern Ontario.
Julie Dabrusin, the federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), has initiated a 24-month period where the federal government will accept public input on the reclassification. At the end of that 24-month period, Dabrusin will either seek a Governor in Council decision to change the Blanchard’s cricket frog’s status to extirpated or refer the issue back to COSEWIC for more consideration.
Scientists determine why this tiny frog seems to “walk” on water
But not all parties are happy with how the ECCC is handling the reclassification. Environmental group Ontario Nature has taken issue with the reasons the ECCC listed for the frog’s disappearance. The federal government attributed the loss to “climate change and changes in the quality and quantity of habitat available.”
Ontario Nature wants the language to more accurately reflect the cause: “Wetland loss and pollution from pesticides and fertilizers.”
“The tragic loss of a very unique species in Ontario has broader repercussions for biodiversity and people right across the province, and that’s why this is so important to get the reasons right and to clearly communicate the reasons to the public,” says Shane Moffat, Ontario Nature’s campaigns and advocacy manager.
On the Ontario government’s website for the Blanchard’s cricket frog, the government states that the frog was lost due to the development of wetlands and the runoff of pesticides and fertilizers.
Moffat says that both the Ontario and federal governments should see the loss of the frog as an indicator of the country’s deteriorating wetlands, a crucial ecosystem for humans and other species.
“In Ontario, wetlands keep our drinking water clean. They protect us from floods. They provide us with vital areas for our own recreation and our own wellness,” he says.
Yet, rather than take this as a sign, both the provincial and federal governments have passed bills that weaken environmental protections.
Wild Profile: Meet the chorus frog
On June 5, the Ontario government enacted Bill 5, which repeals the province’s Species at Risk Act and makes critical habitats more vulnerable. The same goes for the federal government’s Bill C-5, which passed on June 20. Both bills allow each respective government to fast-track designated building projects, bypassing certain environmental protections.
“Instead of taking this as a moment where more protections are needed for nature, more protections are needed for the natural world that we all inhabit, [both governments] are going in the opposite direction,” says Moffat. “And that’s why we think it’s so important that the public has the right to know what exactly has caused this disappearance.”
Ontario Nature is calling on the Ontario government to repeal Bill 5, on the federal government to repeal Bill C-5, and on the ECCC to revise its reasons for the Blanchard’s cricket frog’s disappearance.
Related Story Cottage Q&A: What happened to our frog population?
Related Story 6 frog species getting busy in late spring
Related Story Do you know the 4 strategies that wildlife uses to camouflage?