Can the community contribute to conservation of the endangered Green and Golden Bell Frog at Port Kembla?

Community groups can make significant contributions to threatened species recovery planning. I conducted two questionnaire surveys of the community bordering on Coomaditchy Lagoon, an important breeding site of the endangered Green and Golden Bell Frog Litoria aurea at Port Kembla, New South Wales.The aims of these surveys were to gain an understanding of how widespread bell frogs were through the residential area and to identify how to involve the local community in some kind of monitoring of this endangered frog. There were 65 responses to the first questionnaire; 53 respondents indicated they were aware of this species in Port Kembla and 45 had seen it on their properties. There were 45 respondents who were interested in modifying their gardens to attract frogs and 39 who were willing to become involved with monitoring of frogs on their properties. A second questionnaire conducted 2.5 years later surveyed 46 people who indicated continued interest in bell frogs from the first questionnaire.This revealed that 17 people had modified their gardens to be more attractive to frogs and 7 people had installed frog ponds. Eleven respondents had seen the frog in the four months prior to the questionnaire.These surveys indicated that bell frogs were widespread through the residential area, and that installing ponds and using appropriate landscaping were likely to be beneficial to the local bell frog population. Community-based monitoring could be conducted but to be worthwhile would require the involvement of a community-based co-ordinator.