Frog Week
Frogs and toads are declining worldwide, and the frogs most common to backyards across Pennsylvania are typically overlooked due to their abundance and are often not funded for conservation projects. Frogs are declining due to climate change, deforestation, disease, and lack of support and care.
Cambria, Somerset, Westmoreland, Bedford, and Indiana are home to around eight species of frogs and toads, but these species are declining rapidly due to deforestation. It appeared frogs and toads were destined not to have an advocate like game fish and mammals. This was all changed when PA Woods and Forests was founded in 2022 by AAron Capouellez. He saw the beauty and importance of frogs and toads.
"Frog Week" is a yearly project created by AAron Capouellez. This six-month-long project aims to conserve Pennsylvania's wild frog and toad populations. Frog Week is a collaborative project with contributions from Woods and Forests Media, Frogs and Toads Facebook Group, Our Reptile Forum, and Josh's Frogs
iNaturalist Citizen Science Project: Frog Week in Western/Central Pennsylvania
The iNaturalist Citizen Science Project, known as Frog Week, invites community members from Western and Central Pennsylvania to participate in an exciting initiative. This project encourages residents across the target counties to collect valuable data by gathering vouchers, which include audio recordings and photographs of frogs and toads found in the region.
The goal of Frog Week is to inform the public about yearly trends in amphibian populations in real-time. The collected data will be compared year by year and accumulated over time, providing insights into the health and diversity of local frog and toad species. Join us in this important conservation effort and help us learn more about the fascinating amphibians that call our region home!
This is a private project, meaning participants must be invited.
The Ambient Weather Network showcases the community's interest in the weather in western and central Pennsylvania. We are able to gather more information about the weather in our target counties and understand current weather patterns from a micro-climate perspective. This weather map will help us better understand what is happening around the western and central woods and forests. Zoom out with the map to view the weather in your area! We are installing AWN Stations across backyards in Pennsylvania to help us better understand the microclimates that different populations of frogs endure.
Frog Week is the YouTube and social media side of our citizen science project. The videos feature road rescues, frogs and toads breeding, and conservation of frogs and toads. Our citizen science project was featured on many news outlets: Tribune-Democrat, Daily American, Tribune-Review, WCRO, WTAJ, Studio 814, and more! Scroll down to watch Frog Week from the Woods and Forests Media YouTube Channel.
