Blanchard's cricket frog © Scott Gillingwater
Tkaronto June 23, 2025 – As part of national consultations on the first ever reclassification of an endangered terrestrial species to extirpated in Canada – the Blanchard’s Cricket Frog – Ontario Nature is calling on the federal government to revise its language to better reflect the underlying causes for its disappearance.
According to multiple levels of government and scientific experts, wetland loss and pollution from pesticides and fertilizers are the primary factors behind the cricket frog’s local extinction. However, the language used by the federal government attributes this to “climate change and changes in the quality and quantity of habitat available.”
Ontario Nature is recommending the language be revised to reflect the best available information and attributed to: “wetland loss and pollution from pesticides and fertilizers.”
According to Ontario Nature Campaigns and Advocacy Manager, Shane Moffatt: “While climate change is impacting the natural world all around us, the federal government needs to be clearer on the reasons for species disappearing. The underlying causes of the cricket frog’s tragic fate, wetland loss and pollution in Ontario, remain unaddressed and continue to threaten the survival of many endangered species. The recent passage of Bill 5 in Ontario, which eliminated the Endangered Species Act, highlights just how vulnerable wildlife are across the province. We need all levels of government to act to halt and reverse biodiversity loss.”
At the provincial level, Ontario Nature is calling for the immediate repeal of Bill 5. Federally, we urge the government to fully implement the Species at Risk Act and deliver on Canada’s international biodiversity commitments, including protecting at least 30% of lands and waters by 2030.
Both the provincial and federal governments must recognize that economic development cannot sacrifice environmental protection. No law should grant unrestricted ministerial power to exempt projects from other laws, including legislation designed to protect our most vulnerable species amid a biodiversity crisis.
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Contact
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:
- John Hassell, Ontario Nature, johnh@ontarionature.org, 416-786-2171
Background
- Ontario Nature’s 2-page submission to the federal government.
- In Ontario, approximately 270 species are at risk.
- Ontario’s Bill 5, passed at the start of June, repealed the province’s Endangered Species Act.
- Blanchard’s cricket frog webpage.
- Blanchard’s cricket frog atlas publication listing.