Columbia Gorge News: Wild About Nature: Native bees, Oregon Spotted Frog highlighted
In an effort to conserve and recover the OSF population, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is funding a Bullfrog Removal Action Team. This group of dedicated experts in ethically dispatching bullfrogs was hired by the Mt. Adams Resource Stewards to remove as many bullfrogs as possible from Glenwood Valley. The technique that has worked the best is to hunt the bullfrogs at night with spotlights.
And, progress is being made. King and Sheffels reported that since 2020 the team has removed more than 80,000 bullfrogs from Glenwood Valley. Every March the refuge technicians walk out into the wetlands to count as many egg masses as they can find. Applause broke out when Sheffels and King reported that OSF egg masses increased threefold, close to 1,500 masses, bullfrog numbers are declining, and there is less competition for resources. For now, at least, we’re winning.
