Creston’s Northern Leopard Frog population hosts the majority of the remaining Leopard Frogs in B.C. and serves as the source population for re-introductions, along with twocaptive assurance populations (Vancouver Aquarium and Calgary Zoo).
The Provincial Northern Leopard Frog Recovery team is responsible for the stewardship of the Northern Leopard Frog population at the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area. The recovery team has been actively collecting data on the migration patterns and associated road mortality rates on the Duck Lake Dyke Road since 2009.
Road mortality rates have averaged 23% over the last 8 years. Road mortality is listed as a threat to the Northern Leopard Frogs – which are considered Federally and Provincially endangered. One of the recovery goals of The Northern Leopard Frog Recovery Team is to reduce road mortality rates.
In fall of 2016, a seasonal voluntary road closure was put in place from September 1st-September 30th The efficacy of the closure, along with mortality observations, was monitored by researchers. The Northern Leopard Frog Recovery team found that the voluntary road closure was ineffective.
The voluntary road closure was enacted again for 2017 with an extension to October 15, 2017, and the patterns of frog migration, mortality observations and vehicle use are being monitored nightly.However, observations to date suggest similar results as was seen last year.
The Northern Leopard Frog Recovery team is now moving forward with submitting a proposal for a legal regulation change under the Wildlife Act to enact a seasonal motorized-use closure during the spring March 15-April 30 and fall August 15-October 15 migration periods for the Northern Leopard Frog.
There will be an opportunity for public comments through an online portal which will be active in November. The link is as follows: http://apps.nrs.gov.bc.ca/pub/ahte/