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The northern leopard frog has been assessed as endangered in the Northwest Territories, having previously been assessed as threatened in 2013.
The NWT Species at Risk Committee monitors species to determine if they are at risk of disappearing from the territory. Species can be assessed – in order of severity, worst first – as extirpated, endangered, threatened or of special concern.
The independent committee is made up of experts who use both Indigenous and community knowledge as well as scientific data to make recommendations.
The committee also reviewed the status of the western toad, which was assessed as threatened in 2014 and was again assessed as threatened this year.
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Species on the at-risk list are reassessed every 10 years.
On May 21, 2025, the committee presented its findings to the Conference of Management Authorities – a group of organizations that together manage the territory’s wildlife. That group will now start engagement with communities to determine if the assessments should become the species’ official listings.
Both the frog and toad live in only a small area of the NWT and are sensitive to threats from disease, habitat loss caused by drought and fire, and human impacts such as roads and hydro development.
The northern leopard frog lives in the southern NWT and, while uncommon, has been spotted near the Slave, Taltson and Tazin rivers.
To help protect the frog and toad, the committee recommended protection for breeding grounds and overall protection during regulatory processes, increased research and documentation of Indigenous knowledge to fill in knowledge gaps, and continued public education.
In a news release, the Species at Risk Committee said globally 41 percent of amphibians are listed as endangered or threatened as of 2023.
