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In conjunction with the Planetary Health Centre's Frogs of the Blue Mountains exhibition on Planetary Health Day, Britt Mitchell will share her experience as a frog call validator for the Australian Museum's FrogID project. She will discuss how FrogID has assisted her PhD research: “Australia’s frog species in the Anthropocene – habitat loss, climate change, behaviour, and disease”, the positive impact FrogID is making and how to get involved.Australia is home to an incredible diversity of frogs found nowhere else on Earth. In the Blue Mountains, unique species like the threatened Giant Burrowing Frog (Heleioporus australiacus) and the recently discovered Screaming Tree Frog (Litoria quiritatus) face serious threats to their survival. To protect them, we need to better understand where they live and how their populations are faring. With the free FrogID app by the Australian Museum, anyone with a smartphone can help by recording and submitting frog calls for conservation.
In this presentation, we’ll explore why frogs are vital indicators of a healthy environment and show you how using FrogID can make a real difference. By contributing your frog calls via FrogID, you’ll join thousands of citizen scientists across Australia in helping to map and monitor frog populations, including those in the unique ecosystems of the Blue Mountains.
With the data obtained through FrogID the Museum is able to track introduced species and identify where frogs are thriving and where they aren’t. And by matching calls to weather and habitat, they are learning more about how different frog species are responding to a changing environment.
View the exhibition of all the Frogs of the Blue Mountains, and listen to their calls. Then discover how to become a citizen scientist with FrogID, as well as what we can do to protect these extraordinary amphibians.
About Britt Mitchell:
Britt Mitchell is a conservation biologist at the Australian Museum and UNSW Sydney. Having recently submitted her PhD, her research focuses on how frogs are responding to anthropogenic (human-induced) change, in particular climate change and urbanisation. To answer these questions, Britt leverages data from multiple sources – from in the field, museum collections, and citizen science datasets like FrogID.
Britt is also a committed science communicator, keen on engaging the wider public with scientific research. She has been involved in teaching and outreach initiatives at the University of Sydney, University of Wollongong, UNSW Sydney, the Australian Museum and the Botanic Gardens of Sydney.
Image above:
L. Britt Mitchell
R. Limnodynastes peronii (Striped Marsh Frog), photograph courtesy of Dr Jodi Rowley, Australian Museum
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Blue Mountains Planetary Health Initiative 33-39 Acacia St Katoomba, 33-39 Acacia St, Katoomba NSW 2780, Australia,Leura, New South Wales, Katoomba
Tickets
