Move out the Ouaisné – frogs about!

Wednesday 18 February 2015

Drivers are being urged to watch out for frogs hopping about on the roads around Ouaisné when it’s wet after seven were found run over last week.

Jersey’s agile frogs are heading towards ponds at this time of year to breed and the Environment department are worried some females won’t make it through the traffic.

Principal Ecologist John Pinel said: “A coordinated conservation effort has meant that numbers of agile frogs have increased annually for the past several years and we have a record numbers of frogs in the wild, however these increased numbers also make them more vulnerable to traffic.

We are asking people to be extra vigilant, particularly on wet nights, when driving down Mont du Ouaisné to Ouaisné beach and the bay’s facilities. On one night alone last week, seven frogs were found dead having been squashed by cars.”

Agile frogs are not found anywhere else in the British Isles and numbers here have dropped a lot throughout most of the twentieth century. It’s only known to exist in one natural site on the Island and has been reintroduced into three other sites.

Each female frog is capable of laying up to 400 eggs and the Environment department say every female lost to traffic has a massive impact on the amphibian conservation programme.

The department has been working with Durrell under the auspices of the Jersey Amphibian and Reptile Group (JARG) for a number of years to protect this rare frog.