My animal is the Southern Corroboree Frog. This frog is mainly found in Australia and lives in grassland, heathland, montane woodlands, and subalpine woodlands. The Corroboree frog is critically endangered mainly due to the Chytrid Fungus. This fungus, after attaching to the frog, destroys the frog’s skin. Scientists looking at Corroboree frog’s decline say that there is hope since some adult frogs are developing an immunity to the fungus. It was originally brought to Australia in the 70s by accident. Another reason the Corroboree Frogs are in danger is because of increasing industry and extreme wildfires. This continues to be a problem in Australia and isn’t just hurting the Corroboree frogs. The best way people can help these frogs (and other animals) is by donating to wildlife groups that work to protect endangered animals. In Australia there have been breeding enclosures set up to help bring up the population of the Southern Corroboree frogs and funding organizations like that can help a lot.
I chose this animal for my project because it had very interesting coloring and because it is a poisonous frog. Through more research, I found out that these frogs create their own poison, unlike other poisonous frogs who take it in from a food source. Baby Corroboree Frogs grow during the winter months, December through February and lasts for a while in the cold. While this is happening, adult frogs hibernate through the winter. I thought this frog would make for an interesting planter. I most enjoyed attaching all the extra parts to the body during this project. I liked seeing it all come together and it was a very satisfying step. The most challenging part for me was underglazing the grass. There were a lot of little crevices that were hard to paint and I couldn’t get all the small areas. I tried to overcome this by using a really small brush and putting a little bit of extra paint on the brush just to shove it on but it didn’t work for all the spots. I enjoyed this project and learning about the Corroboree frog. I hope after learning about this frog, people look into it and realize why it should be saved.
