Join the team of Frog Finders!

February is here – and so is the army of Frog Finders!

Now is the perfect time to get involved in the Mary River Catchment Coordination Committee Find a Frog in February.

Frogs are incredibly easy to love. With their permanent smile, gentle nature and quirky habits, they’re both endearing and fascinating to observe. Many species are also key indicators of a healthy environment, making it vital that we keep an eye on them and support their welfare.

Find a Frog in February is now in its 10th year, with over 2,250 locals from across the Sunshine Coast, Noosa, Gympie and Fraser Coast regions taking part. Over the past nine years, enthusiastic “Froggers” have submitted 25,375 records of 39 species—a remarkable community effort.

But frogs urgently need our help. Globally, more than 40% of frog species are threatened, and within our program area we have over 45 species, including 10 that are threatened or may already have disappeared. Because frogs are highly sensitive to changes in their surroundings, every piece of information we collect helps guide future environmental protection and restoration efforts.

Frog surveyors out at night in the wallum – photo by O. Scully (MRCCC)

How You Can Help This February

Here are some simple ways to support your local frogs right now:

Send frog photos and/or call recordings to findafrog@mrccc.org.au. A frog expert will identify them and lodge the record.
Monitor a site this month. Choose one or more spots to observe regularly during February.
Leave some areas “messy”. Logs, branches, leaf litter, rock piles and tall grass create essential habitat.
Avoid pollutants. Chemicals—including soaps—can travel through water and harm frogs.
Protect and restore wetlands. Healthy billabongs, swamps and similar environments make a big difference.
Provide water sources. Ponds, dams and rain-filled depressions all help if paired with vegetation and structure.
Don’t move frogs, tadpoles or eggs. This can spread disease between sites.
Disinfect shoes and gear. Use a 1% bleach solution for 1 minute or fully dry items between visits.
Keep cats indoors at night. Cats can significantly impact frog populations.
Learn frog species. Knowing the difference between cane toads and native frogs helps conservation efforts.
Act on climate change. Simple daily actions matter: https://www.un.org/en/actnow/ten-actions

🐸 How to Submit Your Observations

You can share your frog sightings in three ways:

FFF Record Sheet

Download at https://mrccc.org.au/frog-in-february/

Email completed sheets, photos and/or call recordings to findafrog@mrccc.org.au for identification and entry into the Queensland WildNet database.

iNaturalist

Join the Find a Frog in February project and upload your photos and recordings.

FrogID App

Join the Find a Frog in Feb – Mary River Catchment Coordination Committee group to submit call recordings.

Alice Walters with friendly Giant barred frog – photo by E. Ford (MRCCC)

Join a local event

Learn about our local frog species, their ecological roles, and their conservation status.

The workshop will be followed by evening surveys along Kin Kin and Keys Creek — a great chance to encounter local frogs in their natural habitat and sharpen your identification skills!

RSVP

HAPPY FROGGING from the Find a Frog in February Team – we look forward to hearing from you!

Find a Frog in February is proudly supported by the Sunshine Coast Council, Noosa Shire Council, Gympie Regional Council and the Fraser Coast Council, and delivered by the Mary River Catchment Coordinating Committee.

For more information visit http://mrccc.org.au/frog-in-february/

About the Author: Ilana Kelly

Ilana Kelly is a Communications Officer with Noosa Landcare. Ilana has completed a variety of environmental studies and has previously worked in ecological research. Ilana worked in the Project Officer team within Noosa Landcare for five years, focusing on water quality and catchment management in the Lake Macdonald area in partnership with landholders and Seqwater.