Publications
Wildlife Australia, April 1997
ISBN 0 6422 1400 X
1. Family Hylidae
2. Scientific Name Nyctimystes dayi
3. English Name Day's Frog, Lace-eyed Tree Frog, Australian Lace-lid
4. Intraspecific taxa
None.
5. Species survival status
Endangered. Until 1990 there was no reason to consider N. dayi to be other than secure (McDonald 1992, McDonald et al. 1991). A decline was noted in 1989 and subsequently has been demonstrated to have become progressive and substantial (Richards et al. 1993, Ingram and McDonald 1993, Trenerry et al. 1994).
6. Former distribution
Restricted to the wet tropics of Queensland between Big Tableland (15°42'S) and Paluma (19°01'S).
7. Current distribution
McDonald (1992) plotted 30 localities at which the species has been found. It is now evident that the species has disappeared from all of the 21 sites situated above 300m, and is restricted to the few populations below that altitude.
8. Habitat
Occurs in vegetation and upon rocks beside fast flowing streams.
9. Reasons for decline
Unknown. Richards et al. (1993) reject drought, floods, habitat destruction or pollution by pesticides, inorganic ions or heavy metals.
10. Conservation reserves on which species occurs
Qld: Daintree, Wooroonooran, Crater, Millstream, Lumholtz, Paluma Range, and Cedar Bay National Parks.
11. Other public lands on which species occurs
Qld: Daintree Timber Reserve (165 Monkhouse), Windsor Tableland, Mt Lewis, Lamb Range, and Mt Spec State Forests, State Forest (768 Alcock), Crystal Cascades Water Reserve.
12. Other land on which species occurs
None known.
13. Is knowledge about species adequate for objectives and actions to be defined accurately?
No. Only the most fundamental biological issues have been established.
14. Recovery Plan objectives
14.1. To secure existing populations.
14.2. To determine the causal agent/s responsible for the decline.
14.3. To reduce or eliminate threatening processes.
14.4. To increase the number of stable populations by expansion into the former range.
14.5. To ensure that frog conservation is considered in all relevant land management decisions.
15. Management actions completed or under way
15.1. This species, along with seven other Wet Tropics species, is the subject of a recovery program for threatened frogs of Qld and northern NSW (Coordinator: K.R. McDonald, Qld Department of Environment). The program involves survey, monitoring, ecological research and research into potential causes of decline.
15.2. A draft recovery plan has been prepared (Martin and McDonald 1995).
16. Management actions required
Actions outlined in the draft recovery plan include:
16.1. Monitoring.
16.2. Research into causes of decline.
16.3. Ecological research.
16.4. Captive breeding.
16.5. Genetic studies.
16.6. Public information.
17. Organisations responsible for conservation of species
Qld Department of Environment.
18. Other organisations involved
James Cook University, Co-operative Research Centre for Tropical Rainforest Ecology and Management, University of Queensland, Wet Tropics Management Authority, Qld Department of Natural Resources, amateur frog clubs.
19. Can recovery plan be carried out with existing resources?
No.
Draft recovery plan for Wet Tropics frogs, including this species, includes: survey and monitoring component ($75K per annum); identification of cause of decline (total cost $249K); and captive breeding (total cost $504K). Total cost of implementation of the draft recovery plan is estimated at $1647K over 5 years (7 species).
Total (average cost per species) $235.3K
References:
Ingram, G.J. and McDonald, K.R. 1993. An update on the decline of Queensland's frogs. pp 297-303 in Herpetology in Australia. A diverse discipline. Eds D. Lunney and D. Ayers, Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales, Mosman.
Martin, W.E. and McDonald, K.R. 1995. Draft recovery plan for the stream-dwelling rainforest frogs of the Wet Tropics biogeographic region of north-east Queensland. Unpublished report to the Australian Nature Conservation Agency, Canberra.
McDonald, K.R. 1992. Distribution patterns and conservation status of north Queensland rainforest frogs. Conservation Technical Report No. 1, Queensland Department of Environment and Heritage, Brisbane.
McDonald, K.R., Covacevich, J.A., Ingram, G.J. and Couper, P.J. 1991. The status of frogs and reptiles. pp 338-345 in An atlas of Queensland's frogs, reptiles, birds and mammals. Eds G.J. Ingram and R.J. Raven, Queensland Museum Board of Trustees, Brisbane.
Richards, S.J., McDonald, K.R. and Alford, R.A. 1993. Declines in populations of Australia's endemic tropical rainforest frogs. Pacific Conservation Biology 1: 66-77.
Trenerry, M.P., Laurance, W.F., and McDonald, K.R. 1994. Further evidence for the precipitous decline of endemic rainforest frogs in tropical Australia. Pacific Conservation Biology 1: 150-153.
Herpetological authorities consulted:
R.A. Alford, J.-M. Hero, K.R. McDonald.