A BIAZA first: Breeding Fea's Flying Frog in Captivity.

Fea's flying frog (Rhacophorus feae) is Vietnam’s largest tree frog and is not commonly kept in zoos. This species occurs in mainland southeast Asia and like many amphibians in southeast Asia, this species is poorly studied and basic life history information is lacking. ZSL London Zoo achieved a BIAZA first in the breeding of this species, documented larval rearing techniques and described the tadpole, and took this further by publishing this information in a peer reviewed journal. The London Zoo team then developed a BIAZA care sheet for the species and shared the offspring with other BIAZA institutions; as a result of this four other BIAZA collections now maintain this species. ZSL's research will inform field biologists working in range states. Amphibian larvae are often relatively easy to locate in the field as they usually occur within defined area of aquatic habitat, they may be present, and indeed abundant, for several months or even years. In contrast, post metamorphic amphibians often disperse from breeding sites and individuals, particularly of arboreal species such as Fea's flying frog, may be difficult to find outside of the breeding season. Therefore, detailed descriptions of tadpoles are important when undertaking rapid biodiversity inventories. ZSL London Zoo submitted this project to the BIAZA Awards Animal Husbandry, Care & Breeding category for 2019 and won a Gold award.