An envrionment group in India?launched an ambitious campaign that aims to discover 50 extinct species of Indian amphibians has made remarkable progress recently.

Chalazodes Bubble-nest Frog. Last seen in 1874! Rediscovered after 136 years. [wildlifeextra.com]

Lost! Amphibians of India is an initiative launched at the University of Delhi on 2 November 2010 . Three months later, it has?rediscovered five lost species of frogs.

India has remarkable amphibian diversity with 321 amphibian species recorded. However, sadly, India has already lost 13% of its amphibians, and, this has ranks India amongst the worst countries for extinctions of native species.

Some of these species are only known from very brief century-old original descriptions and/or sketchy illustrations; some lost amphibians species are known from as recently as 18 years ago, but some from as far back as 170 years.

The good news is that just three months after launch of a campaign, Lost! Amphibians of India (LAI) has made remarkable rediscoveries of five lost species of frogs.

Lost! Amphibians of India is an initiative launched at the University of Delhi on 2 November 2010 . The campaign is spearheaded by University of Delhi and works in collaboration with IUCN/ASG, Conservation International, Global Wildlife Conservation, DST and DBT, Government of India, NHM, London and AVC Assam. Prof SD Biju of University of Delhi is the coordinator of the initiative.