Researchers stunned after rediscovering creatures once thought extinct in forest

A team of researchers at the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation Project decided to use new advancements in acoustic analysis to see which thought-to-be-extinct frog species in Panama's forests still survived, according to Smithsonian Magazine. 

Over the past several years, the fungal disease chytridiomycosis, or chytrid, has devastated amphibian populations around the globe, leading to significant population declines and even extinction in some species. But how can conservationists determine whether an animal species is truly extinct or merely difficult to find, like this species of grasshopper?

The researchers set out to find the answer. The result was the rediscovery of four amphibian populations that scientists believed had disappeared completely decades ago.

The research team focused their search of the forests on amphibian species that had disappeared during the 2004-2009 chytrid outbreaks. To determine whether these species had indeed vanished, the team used autonomous recording units, or tiny microphones that capture the sounds of the forest. 

They placed these units in three different locations. During the rainy season, they recorded the forest's sounds for 1 minute every 10 minutes, 24 hours a day. They also did traditional auditory and visual frog surveys. 

The team then utilized pattern-matching software to analyze the records, which led them to discover that four frog species listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species were still around. 

These species included the endangered Vicente's dart frog that was assumed to be extinct in the area, the crowned treefrog that nobody had seen in at least a decade, and the Boquete rocket frog, which disappeared nearly two decades ago. 

Additionally, the researchers came across a Veragua fringe-limbed treefrog with a malformed hand. They took him back to the Amphibian Rescue Center, named him Han Solo, and used recordings of his croaks to find others of his species. 

The updated acoustic technology proved incredibly effective, detecting frog species in twice as many areas as traditional surveys did. The 128,000 one-minute recordings from the autonomous recording units also provided an acoustic archive documenting previously unknown patterns in frog behavior.

While fungal pathogens remain prevalent in the Panamanian environment, with about 21% of the amphibians tested infected, this study shows that many species seem to be rebounding. This could mean they are developing resistance, offering hope that species may rebound to pre-fungal infection levels in the future.

Additionally, although not all frog species have returned to the Panama area, their absence provides an opportunity to engage in conservation efforts, particularly to discover whether human-assisted actions can help restore the lost amphibian species in the region. 

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