# Frog rescue from bushfire ashes returns to wild

> Tadpoles of an endangered species rescued after the 2019-20 black summer fires have been bred in captivity and released back to their native habitat in Victoria.
- Title: Frog rescue from bushfire ashes returns to wild · the Guardian
- Summary: Tadpoles of an endangered species rescued after the 2019-20 black summer fires have been bred in captivity and released back to their native habitat in…
- Keywords: southern giant burrowing frog, endangered species, captive breeding, melbourne zoo, east gippsland, black summer fires, amphibian conservation, victoria, wildlife, the Guardian
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/nov/05/giant-burrowing-frog-returns-to-wild-after-tadpoles-rescued-black-summer-fires-australia
- Published: 2026-11-04T14:01:35+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: southern giant burrowing frog, endangered species, captive breeding, melbourne zoo, east gippsland, black summer fires, amphibian conservation, victoria, wildlife, news, world
## Tadpoles found in fire's aftermath
After the 2019-20 black summer bushfires, scientists in eastern Victoria discovered puddles of tadpoles from the southern giant burrowing frog, one of the state's most cryptic and critically endangered amphibians.
## Rescue and captive breeding begins
About one hundred sixty tadpoles were collected and transported to Melbourne Zoo, where they were raised through to metamorphosis into frogs and successfully bred in captivity for the first time last year.
## Frogs spend most time underground
The elusive frogs grow to roughly the size of a cricket ball and are believed to have long lifespans.

> could quite easily get over 20 years old
## Fifty-three frogs released to wild
Fifty-three of the original tadpoles, now male frogs about five years old, have been returned to their native habitat in a remote area of East Gippsland after big thunderstorms brought eighty to one hundred millimetres…
## Monitoring and future threats ahead
Each frog was tagged before release and song meters installed at sites to detect their calls.

> those wild populations stay healthy and robust, and that the frog doesn't go extinct
## Key takeaway

Fifty-three southern giant burrowing frogs bred in captivity from tadpoles rescued after the 2019-20 black summer fires have been released into their native East Gippsland habitat.