(CNN) – A major comeback is underway at Yosemite National Park, and it involves the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog.
The frogs are an important part of the ecosystem at the park but are currently listed as “endangered” under the Endangered Species Act.
Their population was decimated by a fungal disease known as amphibian chytrid fungus.
Some of the populations were able to recover while also developing a resistance against the disease.
Biologists took some of the frogs and reintroduced them to a dozen new sites in Yosemite.
They monitored the frogs over a 17 year span and found the population was once again thriving.
The biologists said a modeling study suggests the reintroduced populations have a high chance of persisting over the next 50 years.
The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.
Copyright 2024 CNN Newsource. All rights reserved.