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DEP Upgrades Status
of Pine Barrens Tree Frog
Pinelands symbol leaps off endangered species list
(03/65) TRENTON - Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Bradley M. Campbell
today announced he has upgraded the status of the Pine Barrens
tree frog, moving it from the endangered species list to
the threatened species list.
The frog's improved status is based on
biologists' determination that it is locally abundant and
that its habitat is well protected by the Pinelands Commission's
Comprehensive Management Plan.
"When the Pine Barrens tree frog was
added to the endangered species list in 1979, state Pinelands
protection s were in their infancy," Campbell said.
"The removal of the Pine Barrens tree frog from the
state endangered list is testimony to how effective the
Pinelands Commission has been at preserving southern New
Jersey's natural treasures."
The Pine Barrens tree frog requires specialized
habitats that are rare elsewhere but common in the million-acre
Pinelands region of southern New Jersey. The species requires
acidic water and it favors Atlantic white cedar swamps that
are carpeted with dense mats of sphagnum moss. It breeds
in shallow ponds that dry up in summer and are free of predators.
Its population is stable in New Jersey,
and the state serves as a stronghold for the species throughout
its entire range.
Boldly colored, the beautiful Pine Barrens
tree frog is considered by many to be a symbol of the New
Jersey Pinelands. In 1983 it was the subject of Andy Warhol's
screen print series of endangered species.
Because of its improved status, the DEP
has declared the Pine Barrens tree frog Species of the Month
for May. The protection of the Pine Barrens tree frog is
one of many success stories the DEP is celebrating this
year to mark the 30th anniversary of the New Jersey Endangered
Species Conservation Act and the creation of the DEP's Endangered
and Nongame Species Program.
For more information, visit the Species
of the Month homepage at www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/somhome.htm
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