TORONTO, JULY 6, 2016 - The Toronto Zoo is proud to announce that the 2016 Puerto Rican crested toad breeding program, which began onMay 3, 2016, was extremely successful with over 6,000tadpoles being sent to Puerto Rico late today. The tadpoles will be released in a private natural reserve near Arecibo in northern Puerto Rico tomorrow, July 7, 2016.

The Puerto Rican crested toad is listed as a Critically Endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and is found only in Puerto Rico. In collaboration with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP), tadpoles hatched at the Toronto Zoo are released in Puerto Rico each year for the purposes of sustaining and rebuilding the wild population.

The SSP for the Puerto Rican crested toad was developed, in part, to reintroduce the species back into the wild. The Toronto Zoo has been an active participant in the breeding program for over 30 years. We are proud to announce that, with the addition of this year's tadpoles, the Toronto Zoo has contributed a total of 146,586 Puerto Rican crested toads beingreleased back into the wild.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Toronto Zoo's Puerto Rican Crested Toad Breeding Program.

CLICK HERE to learn more about the Puerto Rican crested toad.