Western Toad Conservation Program

Recovery efforts for the western toad are hampered by a lack of key data on this species and its habitats. Utah’s Hogle Zoo, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Utah Geological Survey, and the U.S. Forest Service, established a partnership to help fill these data gaps. Since 2014, Hogle Zoo and partners have monitored western toad populations and other amphibians in sensitive wetland habitats.
As sites are monitored across the state, survey teams track species presence and distribution, identify breeding populations, monitor habitat change, and protect critical wetlands. Surveys occur from May to August and vary from day trips to multi-day camping trips in remote settings.
Community scientists collect information about amphibian eggs, tadpoles, and adults and record habitat data. Management agencies use these data to understand amphibian habitats better and conserve them.