At initial glance, a frog known as "the Old Man" may appear similar to the 30-odd Panamanian golden frogs he is sharing a basement room with at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park. The frog's personality is observed, though, as "more muted."
Even though "the Old Man" has a whole enclosure to himself, he frequently prefers to be hidden under the leaves instead of basking under lights like the frog species.
However, the understated demeanor of 'the Old Man' contradicts his outsized essentiality. It is not just like any Panamanian golden frog, which, despite its name, is technically a toad type.
According to the Smithsonian Magazine, this particular frog species is a member of what might be named the "Greatest Generation" of his species, the first to combat the most formidable of all existential dangers, extinction.
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The 'Golden Frog'
Researchers were able to capture "the Old Man's" parents in early 2000, in El Valle de Anoton and Cerro Campana's verdant cloud forests, the only locations where Panamanian golden frogs existed in the wild after it had turned out to be clear, the beloved species was doomed.
Specifically, in Panama, everyone is aware of the golden frog, considered as the national animal, celebrated in murals, and even in T-shirts and lottery tickets. The Panamanian Golden Frog Day is even celebrated.
This creature is described as a natural marvel, not least for its self-protective characteristic-the neon-yellow-colored skin of just a single frog has enough toxin that can kill more than 1,000 mice.
Unlike many other amphibians that prefer darkness, this toad, gifted with a deadly defense from predators and an unambiguous coloration to promote it, is quite more often than not active in the daytime.
For a long time now, Panamanians have seen the golden frog as a sign of biodiversity of a nation, as well as its natural heritage, making its rapid vanishing all the more poignant.
Mitigating an Extinction
'The Old Man' was hatched in 2005. Meanwhile, all signs suggest the creature has disappeared from its natural habitat; no one has ever observed a Panamanian golden frog in the wild since 2009.
The captivated animals provide a bundle of life for the species. According to the said report, the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project, in partnership with the National Zoo, is currently investigating each of the frogs' skin resistance to selectively breed a tougher generation for release into the wild.
If the initiative becomes successful, the collaborating groups and the Zoon are hoping to reintroduce a disease-resistant version of this species into the wild.
According to the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute's amphibian conservation programs leader Brian Gratwicke, while captive breeding programs can be costly, not to mention dangerous, in the case of Panamanian golden frogs, he thinks it is an example of a species where they have been able to mitigate an extinction.
Gratwicke added that they still need to work on discovering a way to rebuild sustainable wild populations.
The offspring of the old man could strengthen the said efforts. The Maryland Zoo manages the golden frog studbook, a compilation of genealogies maintained to guarantee the best probable genetic pairings.
Related information about the Panamanian golden frog is shown on Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom's YouTube video below:
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Check out more news and information on Golden Frogs in Science Times.
