DMZ is a place where human access has long been denied. Also, it is the place with great biodiversity with insects from both north and the south living together. So, it has excellent conditions for the golden frogs to breed and grow. Not only does it have minimal disturbance from human, it also has bounty of insects from various species.

The golden frog is an endemic species of Korea. It is approximately 6cm. Its back is green and the line that is drawn is brown. Its abdomen is yellow red. The feature that gave its name is its iris sprinkled golden powder. One interesting fact is that both female and male do not have a vocal sac. The golden frog is reported to have been observed in the swamps in DMZ. What a delightful news! 

The golden frog often appears in Korean traditional folktales. For example, there was a king who longed for a son for years. He prayed to the gods for a son and one day, on his way home, he found a rock that was weeping. Curious, he went to turn the rock over and found a baby underneath the rock. He thanked the god for granting him a son and took him. This baby later became, Gum Wa the father of Ju Mong who established Koguryu, one of the kingdoms of the three dynasties era. From this folktale we could see how precious the golden frog was to Korea. He was the embodiment of a great king. 

Designated as second class endangered animal, the golden frog needs extensive care and attention. Unfortunately, it is being threatened because are destroyed and being converted into rice fields. Not only should we be happy at the news that the golden frogs was discovered, we should take care to conserve them.   

Photos are attributable to Hyewon, Indica, and Checky 71

More photos are available here :)

http://www.indica.or.kr/xe/animal/1970881

http://blog.naver.com/PostView.nhn?blogId=checky71&logNo=20135063191&parentCategoryNo=8&viewDate=&currentPage=1&listtype=0

http://www.hyewonphoto.com/xe/work/4091