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NatureNorth at the Zoo

The Amphibians of Manitoba are the latest additions to the interpretive signs at Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park Zoo. Dr. Robert Wrigley, the zoo's curator, is a tireless promoter of environmental education at the zoo and a big fan of Manitoba's frogs, toads and salamanders. So in honour of "The Year of the Frog" (See YOTF in NatureNorth.) Dr. Wrigley prepared 15 new interpretive signs to be posted around the zoo extolling the virtues of Manitoba's amphibians. NatureNorth's Doug Collicutt provided lots of images for this project and helped round up the rest of the pictures needed from a bunch of other folks including: Bill Preston, Neil Gushulak, Pamela Rutherford, Jan Storey, Mike Graziano and Suzanne Collins. Trudy Dingwall from LightVisions did a great job processing all the pictures and designing the signs. And, of course, this project wouldn't have gotten far without the support of the Zoological Society of Manitoba.

You won't see any of these critters in cages or aquariums at the zoo, but you just might see or hear a number of them on the zoo grounds. Wood Frogs and Boreal Chorus Frogs can be heard calling in spring near just about every pond or deep puddle in the zoo and in Assiniboine Park in general. And don't be surprised if you spot a Leopard Frog or Canadian Toad hopping across a trail as you wander around the zoo.

Environmental education is a major focus of Winnipeg's Assiniboine Park Zoo. The zoo's amphibian signs will be printed and set up at the zoo in spring 2009. But that's not the only place you'll be able to see these signs. Thanks to the efforts of Dr. Wrigley and a grant from Manitoba's Sustainable Development Innovations Fund a number of conservation education groups and facilities in Manitoba will also receive copies of the signs.

[SUCCESS! The panels are popping up all over! Here's some at: Grand Beach. ]

NatureNorth is happy to cooperate with the Zoo to help bring you this information about Manitoba's amphibians. Click on the pictures or links below to download PDF versions of these interpretive signs. There's lots of great information in them. Enjoy them online or print them out and cover your wall with Manitoba's frogs, toads and salamanders!

Find out more about the Assiniboine Park Zoo at: www.assiniboineparkzoo.ca.

Manitoba Amphibians at the Zoo!

Enjoy the Amphibians of Manitoba interpretive signs. And don't forget, you can hear the calls of Manitoba's frogs and toads, and find more information about them elsewhere in NatureNorth:

Frog and Toad Calls | Amphibians of Manitoba | The Manitoba Herps Atlas

You'll need Adobe's free Acrobat Reader to view the interpretive signs.

Visit the Zoo online at: www.assiniboineparkzoo.ca

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Amphibian Interpretive Sign Credits

Production of the Amphibians of Manitoba interpretive signs was a project of the Assiniboine Park Zoo and the Manitoba Zoological Society. Text by Dr. Robert Wrigley, Curator, Assiniboine Park Zoo. Doug Collicutt, NatureNorth, helped provide and select images used on the signs. Interpretive sign graphic design and production by Trudy Dingwall of LightVisions.

For more on Manitoba's Amphibians:

Frog and Toad Calls | Amphibians of Manitoba | Wood Frog | Froglog | The Manitoba Herps Atlas