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The northern cricket frog will be protected and populations restored in New York under the final management plan for the amphibian released Monday, DEC Commissioner Joe Martens announced. The final Northern Cricket Frog Recovery Plan is available on DEC's website at http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7120.html.
"The northern cricket frog is an important amphibian component of wetland ecosystems in southeastern New York," Martens said. "Conservation of the northern cricket frog and its habitat is important to conserving New York's biodiversity and unique character. Recommendations in the plan will stabilize and improve the distribution and abundance of this rare amphibian and ultimately increase its population."
The northern cricket frog is New York's only endangered frog and is limited to a handful of breeding populations in southeastern New York. The recovery plan provides a comprehensive review of the northern cricket frog and details a strategy for preventing the loss of this species from the state.
DEC released a draft plan for public comment in January 2014. The final plan includes an assessment of public comment as an appendix. Key provisions of the plan include to:
Recovery plans are not required for endangered species in New York state. However, under regulations implementing the New York Endangered Species Law, a recovery plan can be prepared to provide guidance for activities to improve the status of the species and establish a strategy for securing the species and removing it from the state's endangered species list.
DEC biologists will now develop specific steps to implement the recovery plan, beginning with research to quantify the upland habitat requirements of the frog.
For additional information on the northern cricket frog, including the recovery plan, visit DEC's website at http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7120.html.