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so after all the different tree frogs is
one group that really captivated my
interest and that was the leap frogs you
can just imagine seeing one of those in
the wild it’s just incredible you know
the great their eyes open they got all
bright colors all over just incredible
family but 25 years ago he’s very
looking knowing about these these frogs
and out to all those leaf frogs that was
one in particular that nobody knew
anything about and it was very very rare
as that splendid leaf frog I was on a
mission to find this frog took five
years to find the first one and and it
was incredible you know that was my frog
that was one that one really wanted to
work with I got special permission to
collect them brought them back to the
museum they bred them for the first time
in the world
Manchester and I did my thesis on the
frog described this biology the tough
whole development that never been
described before and it really became my
frog people often think of museums as
kind of dead space is full of all this
dead stuff but actually the museum is is
live and not least the vivarium which is
full of live animals so it’s the heart
of what we do and sharing that with the
public and really compelling ways are
going to capture their imagination frogs
are naturally very sensitive species and
the frog species that were working with
are extremely rare and endangered so
it’s really really important that we
take extremely good care of them because
when they’re gone they’re gone and we’re
dealing with a very small population
already
when we talk about museum collections
Natural History collections insects
mammals loads of other collections
basically specimens themselves represent
physical proof that this particular
species occurs on that particular part
of the pill before we need to keep them
in order to show to to prove that this
person differently because there there
was actually another species that was
very closely related as they lived in
the Amazon area after study in the
suspended leaf frog I really wanted to
find that one so when old were to work
with off South America to actually look
for that particular one but while I was
there I came across an another leaf frog
that didn’t fit with either of them
straight away I realized that it was
different you know seen seen something
like that new it was just mind-blowing
really but that’s done work and plucking
can I put it really it’s earthy just
blew me away it was like magic below be
second Coletti the time they enough
permits to collect it start to leave it
where it was to actually think will I be
able to come back and find another one
or will I ever see this frog again I
think that was that was the worst really
thinking I’ve got to take a photograph
of it and know that he’s different but
there’s nothing I can do about it and
Roland last year I was able to get some
from Ecuador and when I got those
specimens it was just I was just magical
seeing them these were the ones I found
this was exactly the same as the one
that I’d seen in there could all I knew
was completely different from the
splendidly from and it just rekindled
everything if you want to describe new
species you need to fix a specimen which
becomes a standard of these particular
species names it’s similar like we have
a standard of weight standard of length
standard for various measures you get
the neutral medical institutions and
here Natural History Museum we keep
standards of scientific names
when you name something it’s always
possible for people to disagree on what
that thing is and by having a permanent
record in museums of these specimens we
can always sort out disagreements
because we can actually look at what
someone thought a species was when it
was described without specimens like
this type we wouldn’t be able to
describe new specimens because we
wouldn’t have anything to compare them
to and that’s essential to understand
what different species are so in order
to describe the new species that found
in Ecuador I needed to built it to
compare it to the original specimen that
was collected over hundred years ago
that was named splendidly from that
specimen was actually located at the
British Museum and when I went there and
I’ve got the type specimen the splendid
leaf frog out to compare it to my new
one as they realized that they were the
same everything changed because it
already been described the one from
Ecuador was the splendidly frog and it
was incredible just to have that
realization at the time but actually the
one everybody knows the one I’ve been
working with for so long was the new
species it’s almost been like a mystery
think about how can this confusion have
happened and delving into museum records
trying to find out exactly how this has
happened it turned however there’s one
specimen in 1927 was collected in Panama
it was taken back to America and they
said that this frog was the same as the
one that was brought back to the British
Museum that it wasn’t it was a different
species but at that time nobody compared
their two so over the years more I’ve
been collecting pollen are more been
collecting Costa Rican they’ve all been
compared to the one was talked back to
Harvard nobody’s actually compared them
one-on-one with your time space on it
I guess until I came along and was able
to do that side by chance so these two
frogs that are look completely different
now when we see them together and be
confused for over a hundred years it’s
amazing that such a large animal with
all the science that’s gone on in these
areas that these could have been
confused for so long so is it’s kind of
ironic that this species that are know
so well that our folks my career on
almost really and and it’s know inside
out all the time
that frog was a new spacious it was just
like I still can’t go over it now to be
honest with you it’s just amazing that
actually one everybody knows once in the
books but I’ve been working with I’ve
been able to name as a new species
it’s just taxonomist they actually have
baptized us before before you you name
creature this creature cannot be talked
about because you don’t know what or
what it is so you need to know it’s
precise scientific name when you know it
here you can talk about this suspicious
and you can present it to the wider
audiences you can talk about
consideration you can talk about habitat
preferences you can study its biology
when you know the name name is something
named a new species and finally species
is something that is a physiologist
dream really and with this project just
meant so much to me my granddaughter
means so much to me my first
granddaughter it just felt right that it
was it was to be named after and so that
you know when I
disappear she’ll still have that she’ll
have that for life you know she’ll be
able to be proud that she’s got a frog
named after her and it’s a beautiful
frog separating these two out has meant
that the original calc era for the one
that was you know they want was a reason
to collect in 1902 over a hundred years
ago he’s actually a lot rarer than we
ever thought what was thought to be a
species that had an occurrence all the
way from Ecuador right the way through
to Honduras has suddenly had this
distribution heart this frog is
extremely rare there’s less than 50 ever
been seen so you know reviews required
now to assess the requirements for these
species it needs to be protected
given the current extinction crisis
especially among amphibians we have had
no idea how much we’re actually losing
at the moment so being able to identify
all these species it gives us an actual
chance if we have to save them you know
if you don’t know what you’re losing how
how are you ever going to conserve it
what’s all this stuff for what are all
of our collections for they’re for
understanding they’re for learning
they’re for us to really inform how we
want to be in the world what actions we
want to undertake to care for the
environments in which we live and for me
this story absolutely brings all of
those together
most people think we know that preserved
specimens are locked in the cabinet and
that’s it
but these specimens are just crucial for
the future for for understanding the
biodiversity that we have around us
today we kind of owe it to the people
that collected those specimens a hundred
years ago to preserve these specimens
for the future and make the most of them
make them relevant to what we’re trying
to do today
you
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