HARRISON COUNTY, Miss. – The Mississippi gopher frog is the most rare amphibian in North America, critically endangered.
According to Collette Gise, amphibian and reptile attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity, there could be less than a hundred of the adult frogs remaining in the wild. The frog only breeds in one pond, Glen’s Pond in Harrison County, but can sometimes be found at other colocations in Jackson County.
The Center for Biological Diversity submitted a notice to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that they intended to sue the agency because a recovery plan for the frogs had not been put in to place. The frog was noted as an endangered species back in 2001. Typically the agency is supposed to put together a recovery plan for any species two years after being listed. For now, the agency has agreed to come up with a draft recovery plan by the end of the year and should have a final plan within the next year.
