Endangered giant burrowing frog returns to wild after tadpoles rescued from ashes of black summer fires

Tadpoles collected from puddles in East Gippsland were transported to Melbourne zoo, where they were raised to metamorphosis and successfully bred in captivity for the first time

After the 2019-20 black summer bushfires, scientists in eastern Victoria stumbled across something they had been after for years: puddles of tadpoles from the southern giant burrowing frog, one of the state’s most cryptic amphibians.

The fires had torn through extensive areas in East Gippsland, sparking concerns for the survival of the frog, which is considered critically endangered in Victoria.

About 160 tadpoles were collected and transported to Melbourne zoo, where they were raised through to metamorphosis into frogs and successfully bred in captivity for the first time last year.