Extinct frog rediscovered in Israel

Thought extinct when marshes were drained in 1950's
November 2011. Two specimens of a frog that was believed to be extinct have been found in Israel. The Hula painted frog (Discoglossus nigriventer) was declared extinct in 1996 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

"The species now has another chance to survive," said a representative of Israel's Nature and Parks Authority. An inspector from the Authority found the frog in the Hula Valley and is has now been placed in a protective facility.

Only 5 have ever been found
Only five Hula painted frogs have ever been collected. Four were found in 1940 and one in the 1950s, when most the Hula Valley's marshes were drained to create arable land eradicate malaria. Parts of the valley were re-flooded three years ago, and it is believed that this has helped the frog cling on to existence.

In 2000, a scientist from the Lebanese nature protection organisation A Rocha claimed he had seen a frog species which could be Discoglossus nigriventer in the Aammiq marshes south of the Beqaa Valley in Lebanon. Two French-Lebanese-British expeditions in the years 2004 and 2005 yielded no confirmation as to the further existence of this species. In August 2010, a search organised by the Amphibian Specialist Group of the International Union for Conservation of Nature set out to look for various species of frogs thought to be extinct in the wild, including the Israel painted frog.

1/3 of world's frogs endangered or extinct
Blaming habitat loss and fungal disease, the IUCN believes nearly a third of the world's amphibian species are endangered or extinct.

Conservation International have launched a global search for "lost frogs". the announcement follows an expedition to the remote mountains of southern Haiti last October, led by CI's Amphibian Conservation Specialist Dr. Robin Moore in partnership with Dr. Blair Hedges of Pennsylvania State University.

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/israel-hula-frog.html