New rare amphibian species at the Vivarium
Tierpark Chemnitz: Four Loja marsupial frogs move in - name found for deer
A new rare amphibian species has arrived at Chemnitz Zoo. After the vivarium was closed for a few days last week for technical reasons, it is now open to visitors again. And they can now admire a new rarity: the Loja pouched frog. A total of four animals came to Chemnitz from the Karlsruhe Zoological Garden at the beginning of January. Karlsruhe and Chemnitz are the only institutions in Europe that keep this species.
Pouched frogs owe their German trivial name to the fact that the adult females carry their clutch of eggs in a pouch on their back. In animals of the genus Gastrotheca, which includes the Loja marsupial frog, the brood pouch is open at the back. The female uses this pouch to carry the eggs until they develop into tadpoles and then places them in calm or almost stagnant water.
The Loja pouched frog has its distribution area in Ecuador, although this is highly fragmented. Climate change, habitat destruction by humans and the use of pesticides are having a severe impact on the species. The population of the Loja marsupial frog is declining significantly. For this reason, the species has been classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species since 2016 - the middle of three endangerment categories.
This makes the successful and coordinated breeding of such endangered species all the more important, especially as amphibians are considered the most threatened class of vertebrates worldwide. Chemnitz Zoo makes an important contribution to the conservation of various species with its regular breeding programmes and would like to use its expertise in the field of amphibian husbandry and breeding to contribute to the conservation of the Loja marsupial frog.
Name found for "little prince"
At the beginning of January, Chemnitz Zoo called for a vote on a name for the Prince Alfred deer, who was born in December. Now the decision has been made: With more than a third of the votes, the choice was "Herbert".
The winner can look forward to an admission ticket including a short guided tour of the young stag.
Opening hours of the zoo and game reserve in January and February:
9 a.m. to 4 p.m., last admission 3 p.m.