Ex situ breeding of common midwife toad (Alytes obstetricans) (EVINBO)

The project concerns the breeding of the common midwife toad within the framework of the Species Protection Programme (SPP) for the common midwife toad, which was approved by ministerial decree at the end of 2017. This SPP aims to achieve the Regional Conservation Objectives for the species, namely: at least twenty populations of the midwife toad, each with at least two hundred calling males. On the one hand, the analysis of the current populations shows that there are no longer twenty populations, while the current numbers in the remaining populations are well below the two hundred calling males per population. A number of populations even consist of only a few calling males. Due to the very limited number of remaining individuals, the chance of survival of such populations may have become very small in the short term, even in case of optimal habitat restoration. Given that different populations appear to be highly isolated, it is unlikely that genetic exchange between populations can still occur spontaneously within the current landscape context. For this reason, the SPP foresees assisted gene migration (via translocation of individuals) as an essential part of the preservation of these populations.
The Nature Agency wishes to start up the action of the SPP on breeding parallel to the habitat recovery on the site. The research assignment includes the start of the breeding programme of the common midwife toad.