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There were thought to be only 5,000 of NZ’s tiny Archey frogs, but new eyebrow-raising research published by multinational mineral company OceanaGold says there are more than 50 million
The only terrestrial frog in mainland New Zealand is on the list of critically endangered species and has been at the center of a massive conservation effort. It is a nocturnal master of camouflage found only in small patches of forest in King Country and Coromandel, first identified as a unique species in 1942.
Auckland Zoo and Waikato Regional Council have both set aside money over the past year to study and protect the ‘enigmatic’ frog, and they’re not alone. An international gold mining company has funded a major population survey, published this week.
Extraordinary is the research led by longtime ecologist Dr. Brian Lloyd of the Department of Conservation, now a private advisor, says official estimates of 5,000 to 20,000 Archey frogs are hugely understated. His modeling concludes that there are more than 50 million in the wild.
The study is part of a resource permit application by OceanaGold for a new underground mine north of Waihi.
It extrapolates from 381 records of Archey’s frog sightings, most from a 578 square kilometer block of native habitat in the Coromandel Peninsula’s mountain range, including the predicted vibrational footprint of the proposed Wharekirauponga mine.
“Our best estimate for the total frog population of Coromandel Archey is 54.8 million frogs,” the report concludes from Lloyd. “This is several orders of magnitude greater than a previously estimated total NZ population of 5,000 to 20,000 adult frogs in the New Zealand Native Frog Recovery Plan.”
“This creature was more than a statistic – it was a unique expression of our connection to the ancient world.”
– Catherine Delahunty, Coromandel Watchdog of Hauraki
According to OceanaGold, beneath the frogs’ habitat is one of the largest gold deposits north of Waihi. The proposed mine has divided opinion in the Coromandel. On the one hand, there are those who are happy with the hundreds of jobs promised and billions in export earnings.
On the other hand, there are major concerns about the impact on the protected land above the mine, and the flora and fauna that inhabit it. In particular the heavy metals, the effect of draining water from the forest and the impact of the vibrations on the frogs.
OceanaGold insists it can build and operate the mine “with minimal to no impact”. It would include the underground mine and a 4 mile tunnel to access it, a portal entrance on company property 3 miles north of Waihi, an open mine immediately west of an upgraded processing plant, a third waste pile and a rock storage facility.
The sometimes-controversial mining company (it’s in regulatory disputes in the Philippines and El Salvador) has applied for permission to drill resources under the frogs’ forest park habitat. On Friday, Waikato Regional Council formally accepted the application as complete under s88 of the Resource Management Act.
Council spokesman Wendy Valois says the application, including data on Archey’s frog, is being reviewed by council officials with the support of a number of outside technical experts.
It already raises some eyebrows. Avi Holzapfel, the Department of Conservation operations manager for Hauraki, says they will read the report with interest and consult with frog experts on its contents.
“Some of the findings in the advisor’s report are surprising, especially the large estimate of the Archey frog’s population size,” Holzapfel says. “Some findings contradict widely held scientific opinion about the species and the experience and observation of our collaborators who’ve worked on the ground at Wharekirauponga.”
Entertainment personalities Guy Williams and Morgan Donoghue are campaigning for the government to keep its promise to stop mining on protected lands.
Catherine Delahunty, president of Hauraki’s Coromandel Watchdog, says the study gives 50 million reasons not to mine.
“While our population estimate is based on sparse data and untested assumptions, it is the best possible estimate with the available data, and more credible than the estimate of 5,000 to 20,000. A more reliable estimate than ours would require a well-designed study program require extensive and intensive fieldwork.”
– dr. Brian Lloyd, author of the report
Archey’s frog is special, and a taonga for iwi, says the former Green MP. “Weirdly enough, when I saw my first Archeys it was in the Koru Lounge,” she recalls.
“The late Dr. Phil Bishop traveled with a few fingernail-sized examples of the 200 million year old species. He showed me this tiny life form and suddenly this creature was more than a statistic – it was a unique expression of our link to the old world.
“Archeys are a taonga species that live in a forest where they barely move a square meter in their lives unless we cause disturbances. In the past, the species has almost collapsed due to disease and disturbance, so why would we do that again ?”
She warns that draining the forest that is home to a population of Archey’s frogs and blowing it up under their largest habitat won’t help the species recover.
At a recent meeting, Department of Conservation staff told her group that the species was struggling. So she says it’s hard to know whose numbers are correct. She calls for independent data from groups like the Amphibian Survival Alliance and the International Union for Conservation of Nature scientists.
Delahunty says the 27-page research report is based on a number of assumptions rather than solid data. “But even if there are far more frogs than previously thought, this precious population of an endangered species must be left alone.
“They’ve found more Archeys than anyone expected in the limited areas studied and did some math based on this work. They’ve argued that vibrations won’t harm the frogs based on very limited data on low-level explosions in the Golden Cross mine, but it is not clear whether population monitoring in that area is robust before and after the failed mine.”
Lloyd defends the findings of his study: “While our population estimate is based on sparse data and untested assumptions, it is the best estimate possible with the available data, and more credible than the 5,000 to 20,000 estimate. A more reliable estimate than ours would require a well-designed curriculum with extensive and intensive fieldwork.”
The first question for OceanaGold Group’s environmental manager is almost self-evident: how credible are the findings, given that they come from a mining company with a clear vested interest?
The report is published by the mining company, not in a peer-reviewed journal. So Queensland-based Kerry Watson responds indirectly, pointing to Brian Lloyd’s credentials as the published author of other research papers and publications on New Zealand’s fauna, and as an expert witness at Environmental Court hearings.
“As part of our resource consent application, we worked with independent researchers to better understand the environment we propose to work in, the potential for our project to impact the environment and how we can mitigate the potential impacts. reduce or eliminate,” he says. “These studies will all be tested by an independent panel through the consent process.”
He argues the findings make no difference to the risk profile of the Waihi North mining proposal, or to the “rigorous licensing and approval process” the company must go through.
“We are pleased to be able to provide more data and insight to the species and to the scientific community. None of our commitments to operate responsibly, including ensuring we have minimal surface impact on flora or fauna, has changed. “
Those pledges, to reduce the risk to the frogs, include special funding for scientific research and for pest control that, Watson says, will help protect other native species, as well as Archey’s frog.
An OceanaGold public relations adviser declined to facilitate an interview with Brian Lloyd, saying the report’s author would not comment beyond what he published in the investigation.
