Endangered Houston Toad in Wildfire Disaster

[Frog News]

Frog Forum News Center, Ohio, USA, September 5th 2011: Endangered Houston Toad in Wildfire Disaster



The endangered Houston Toad's future looks to be in dire peril after record breaking wildfires tear through its remaining stronghold. Article by John P. Clare PhD. Photo courtesy Texas Parks and Wildlife Department / Glenn Mills.

A 16 mile wide by 6 mile long wildfire continues to work its way eastwards through Bastrop County, Texas, as of this evening. Firefighters and state authorities have been unable to keep the massive blaze in check. Sixty or more wildfires are blazing throughout the state, fanned by winds from Tropical Storm Lee and exacerbated by one of the state's driest summers on record.

Governor Ricky Perry has urged residents of Bastrop County, just 20 miles outside of the state capital Austin, to evacuate their homes rather than risk their lives. As Texas desperately tries to cope with the natural disaster, one victim that has been understandably overlooked is the endangered Houston Toad, Bufo houstonensis.

State authorities report that the toad's last stronghold, Bastrop State Park and its surroundings, has lost at least 50% of its area to the wildfire, and the fire is still moving east. The toad was once found in several counties around Houston, but due to the expansion of the largest city in Texas, lax pollutions laws, and the possible impact of diseases including Chytrid fungus, the Houston Toad's range has contracted to just a couple of counties. Only Bastrop county maintained a healthy population of the species, but this must now be viewed as greatly imperiled.

The amphibian's preference for friable, sandy soils has made it vulnerable to the possibility of wildfires blazing through its dry habitat. Captive breeding efforts have had very limited success in securing toad numbers. A disaster of the current proportions could now mean the species will have no viable populations left, leading to a slow decline into extinction.

While we must prioritize our concerns in terms of human life and property, let us hope that the wildfires spare this unique species of amphibian from extinction.

[John]

Texas Parks and Wildlife published this press release this morning. It would seem that all but 100 acres of the 6000 acre state park has received at least some fire damage.

Sept. 6, 2011

Wildfires Consuming Bastrop State Park

BASTROP, Texas – Despite earlier optimism, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department firefighters and other personnel were still facing a fire threat to historic structures at Bastrop State Park today.

According to TPWD incident commander Robert Crossman, all but about 100 acres of the 6,000-acre park have been blackened by fire, but firefighters have so far been able to save most of the Civilian Conservation Corps-constructed structures on the park, with two possible exceptions – two CCC observation structures believed to have been damaged.

“We still have critical fire behavior threatening the CCC cabins,” Crossman said. He said firefighters, assisted by newly arrived federal firefighters, dealt with two flare-ups at the park overnight, one at midnight and the other at 5 a.m. today. Firefighters are using heavy equipment, much of it provided by donors who responded to a TPWD call for assistance, and water trucks to build fire breaks and saturate the ground around the historic structures. Among those providing immediate assistance include: Holt Cat, Comanche Ranch, Jimmy Evans Construction, Ranger Excavating and Al Niece Equipment.

“The outpouring of support from these companies has been nothing short of extraordinary,” said Carter Smith, TPWD executive director. “Without hesitation, they sent over heavy equipment, machinery and operators, and water tanks to aid our firefighters on site. These resources have been indispensible.”

TPWD has about 75-plus personnel responding to wildfires in the Bastrop area, including state park firefighters, parks police and game wardens.

The fire has damaged the regional state park headquarters on State Highway 71, about four miles from the park. In addition, several TPWD employees lost their homes in Bastrop County. Some TPWD vehicles and other equipment were also destroyed.

State parks officials are still planning to make an all-out effort to save historic structures on the park, many of which were constructed in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps.

“Much of Bastrop State Park has been burned and our firefighters have once again shown their mettle with incredible effort to save the historic district of this National Historic Landmark,” said State Parks Director Brent Leisure, whose home and that of Buescher State Park superintendent Cullen Sartor were among those destroyed by the fire. “Countless homes have been saved. Despite the outstanding effort, this fire has outstripped our capabilities to protect all things.”

While Bastrop State Park and nearby Buescher State Park are closed, all other area parks remain open, including nearby Palmetto State Park and Monument Hill State Historic Site.

Park officials are also concerned about threats to the endangered Houston toad. The 124,000-acre Lost Pines area of Bastrop County, which includes the state park, is home to the largest known population of the small, reclusive amphibians in the U.S.

Leisure said the toad has already been stressed by the ongoing drought and loss of habitat caused by wildfires will likely impact the toad further.

TPWD: News Release: Sept. 6, 2011: Wildfires Consuming Bastrop State Park

[John]

We here at FrogForum wrote about the toad's plight before any one else, and now Reuters (who seem to have plagiarized our news piece) and other major news agencies now have stories on this.