Slimy heralds of hope are hopping around Yosemite National Park.
Being a frog hasn’t been easy in the High Sierra or in many other places ever since a fungal parasite began exterminating frogs in the United States, Australia and Central America 30 or so years ago. But now some impacted species are beginning to recover with the help of innovative conservation strategies.
Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frogs are once again thriving after being driven to the brink of extinction. And biologists are capitalizing on their success by spreading the survivors like seeds across remote wilderness areas of Northern California, where the fungal epidemic arrived by the early 2000s.