Patrick Pikacha

Kuchu Mago Frog Project: Distribution, Abundance, Habitat Preference and Conservation Status of Frogs of the New Georgian Islands, Western Province, Solomon Islands

B.elegans.

P.solomonis.

This scope of this project includes noting habitat type, population densities, and distribution, with basic ecology data such as breeding seasons, threats to species. To revise a faunal list for the Western Province, with focus on the vertebrates of this poorly known region of Melanesia; to raise conservation awareness by presenting talks to resource owners and in schools; and to liaise with Western Province leaders and conservation NGOs to promote and gazette areas of universal conservation value.

Specifically this research aims to study the distribution habitat preferences and conservation status of native frogs of the New Georgian Islands, Western Province, Solomon Islands. The latter is made of up 6 main islands, Kolombangara, Rendova, Tetepare, New Georgia, Vangunu and Gatokae Island. It aims to investigate the presence and absence of different frog species within the different habitats of the islands. An effort will also be made to survey all old growth montane forests which has never been done before.

This effort is urgent for a number of reasons:

1) large scale – logging and deforestation of forests,

2) a lack of taxonomic work on frogs in the Solomons,

3) the nature of frogs – their vulnerability to environmental changes,

4) to update (by field surveys an amphibian/faunal (opportunistically) list of species in areas not accessed before such as the montane forests.

For more information contct ppikacha@yahoo.com or go to http://www.melanesiangeo.com/archives.html