Earlier this year, Saint Louis Zoo staff traveled to Ecuador to partner with Centro Jambatu de Investigación y Conservación de Anfibios in releasing close to 1,000 critically endangered harlequin toads into the wild. The release marks a landmark milestone in the effort to safeguard Ecuador’s endangered amphibian populations.
Despite its small size, Ecuador supports extraordinary amphibian diversity, ranking among the world’s richest ecosystems with more than 600 species. Even so, over 40 percent of these species are threatened and many have already vanished. Deforestation, mining and fungal diseases such as chytridiomycosis (chytrid fungus) have taken a staggering toll.
The Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Institute Center for Ecuadorian Amphibian Conservation works closely with Centro Jambatu to understand and reduce threats to native amphibians in Ecuador. For more than 15 years, this collaboration has supported breeding, research and the collective conservation of Ecuador’s amphibians.
During the field visit, the Saint Louis Zoo helped release two species of Atelopus (commonly called stubfoot or harlequin toads) into native habitats in Ecuador’s rainforests. One of those is Atelopus longirostris (the long-snouted harlequin toad). This critically endangered species is endemic to Ecuador’s Chocó lowland and foothill forests and was once thought to be extinct. In 2016, the Saint Louis Zoo helped rediscover Atelopus longirostris when individuals were rescued by Centro Jambatu for conservation breeding. In 2025, about 500 individuals of this rare species were released, marking an incredible milestone for amphibian conservation.
Nearly 500 Atelopus sp. “spumarius Limon” (the Limon harlequin frog) also were released. Native to the Amazon foothills, this species has not yet been formally described by science. Its native habitat is increasingly threatened by mining operations, pushing the species to endangerment. Conservation efforts by the Saint Louis Zoo and Centro Jambatu aim to protect the Limon harlequin frog from extinction before researchers have the chance to fully understand these remarkable animals.
This release is the culmination of more than 15 years of partnership between the Saint Louis Zoo and Centro Jambatu. As a “megadiverse” amphibian destination, Ecuador is a pivotal focal point for researchers and conservationists striving to understand and protect amphibian species. Centro Jambatu alone houses and maintains a significant population of these species, including several which are extinct in the wild.
By supporting Centro Jambatu’s conservation efforts, the Zoo hopes to secure a future for Ecuador’s endangered amphibians.