World Salamander Day 2026

Graphic Design Gathering (Promo Materials)

📅 Friday March 27, 2026
🕘 10 AM to 11 AM Los Angeles Time (Convert Timezone Here)
🌏 Free Online Event

Join SAVE THE FROGS! Founder Dr. Kerry Kriger and a global community of salamander enthusiasts, artists and graphic designers for a live, collaborative design session to create promotional materials for the inaugural World Salamander Day.

In just one hour, you’ll create a shareable graphic — a social media post, flyer, or digital poster — using stunning free stock salamander photography and your favorite design tool. No professional design experience required — only enthusiasm for salamanders!

At the end of the session, we’ll ask you to post your creation to social media, tag us @worldsalamanderday , and help us spread the word for March 28. Every graphic helps.

Free online event. All skill levels welcome.

ASG’s Involvement in salamander conservation

📅 Saturday March 28, 2026
🕘 6:00 AM to 6:30 AM Los Angeles Time (Convert Timezone Here)
🌏 Free Online Event

Speaker: Amael Borzee

The IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group is the largest volunteer scientific network dedicated to amphibian conservation, with the goal of providing the scientific information informing conservation. Our activities are divided into thematic working groups, regional working groups and task forces, one of which is specifically dedicated to salamander conservation. The Amphibian Red List Authority in charge of the Red List assessments is also part of the ASG, and we now aim to update assessments of threatened species every 5 years. The first goal of the Eastern Asian Salamander Task Force is to document threats to the species in the focal area, to provide data for Red List assessments, and build strong conservation plans.

Amael’s presentation will be followed by a Q&A and a few words from SAVE THE FROGS! Founder Dr. Kerry Kriger, who conceived and organizes World Salamander Day.

SAVE THE FROGS! South Asia Meetup:
Himalayan Salamander Conservation

📅 Saturday March 28, 2026
🕘 6:30 AM to 7:45 AM Los Angeles Time (Convert Timezone Here)
🌏 Free Online Event

Join this SAVE THE FROGS! South Asia Meetup for a special online meetup focused on the conservation of Himalayan Salamanders, organized by SAVE THE FROGS! India. Learn about ongoing research, habitat protection efforts, and how you can support salamander conservation in the Himalayas. To attend this event, you must register here!

Speakers:
Dr. Barkha Subba – Status Survey and Restoration of Himalayan Salamander Habitat in Darjeeling Hills (7pm IST)
Sarbani Nag – Himalayan Crocodile Salamander – the Marvel of the Mighty Himalayas (7:20pm IST)
Dipesh Giri – Salamander Survival in a Shrinking Wetland: A Long-Term Study from Mirik, India (7:40pm IST)

Graphic Design Gathering (Educational Materials)

📅 Saturday March 28, 2026
🕘 3:15 PM to 4:15 PM Los Angeles Time (Convert Timezone Here)
🌏 Free Online Event

Join SAVE THE FROGS! Founder Dr. Kerry Kriger and a global community of salamander enthusiasts, artists and graphic designers to create educational materials that will live beyond the inaugural World Salamander Day.

In one focused hour, you’ll produce a ready-to-use educational piece — a printable fact sheet, classroom poster, carousel, or infographic — drawing on free stock photos, scientific resources, and your design tool of choice.

Materials created during the gathering will be collected and featured on the World Salamander Day website as freely downloadable resources for schools and nature centers worldwide. This is your chance to leave a lasting contribution to salamander conservation education that teachers, volunteers, and park rangers will use for years to come.

Free online event. Educators, designers, and enthusiasts of all skill levels welcome.

A Sanctuary to protect a micro endemic and critically endangered salamander

📅 Saturday March 28, 2026
🕘 4:15 PM to 4:45 PM Los Angeles Time (Convert Timezone Here)
🌏 Free Online Event

Speaker: José Alfredo Hernández Díaz

Cuetzalan Salamander is a micro endemic and critically endangered species inhabiting the cloud forest from Sierra Madre Oriental in the State of Puebla, Mexico. This species is not protected by Mexican laws and was not present in any protected area. The main threat that the species is facing is habitat loss. In 2020 we started a project to look for viable populations of Cuetzalan salamander in the remaining forest patches with the aim of creating a private protected area for the species. As a result of this project we identified a 8 hectares property with a very good population of Cuetzalan salamanders as well as other 16 species of amphibians. In 2022 we got funding from the World Land Trust to purchase that property and establish the Cuetzalan Cloudforest Amphibian Sanctuary. Last year we were able to expand the protected area to 14 hectares. With the Sanctuary, we are protecting not only 17 species of amphibians but all the biodiversity in the could forest from Cuetzalan, Mexico.

Celebrating the Mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus): A Hidden Salamander of Illinois

📅 Saturday March 28, 2026
🕘 4:45 PM to 5:00 PM Los Angeles Time (Convert Timezone Here)
🌏 Free Online Event

Speaker: Dolores Sanchez

The mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus) is one of Illinois’ most fascinating and least observed salamanders. Unlike most amphibians, it spends its entire life underwater, inhabiting rivers and lakes where it shelters beneath rocks. Although it is listed as threatened in the state and occurs across much of the Midwest, surveys remain limited, and significant gaps persist in our understanding of its distribution, population status, and response to changing water quality and habitat conditions.

This presentation introduces the natural history of the mudpuppy, its ecological importance in freshwater systems, and the conservation challenges it faces. It also examines why the species is difficult to study and how emerging tools, such as environmental DNA (eDNA), are transforming detection efforts. In addition, a web-based reporting form is presented to engage the Chicago angler community in documenting sightings and dispelling common misconceptions. Together, these efforts support community-driven conservation and improve our understanding of this remarkable species.

Dolores Sanchez is a SAVE THE FROGS! Grantee and will join the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Ph.D. program at the University of Illinois Chicago in Fall 2026. Her research will examine how land use change and habitat degradation influence amphibian disease dynamics, using environmental DNA (eDNA), microbiome analysis, and remote sensing to inform conservation efforts.

Chileno Valley Newt Brigade

📅 Saturday March 28, 2026
🕘 5:00 PM to 5:15 PM Los Angeles Time (Convert Timezone Here)
🌏 Free Online Event

Speaker: Christyne Davidian

This presentation will cover how the Chileno Valley Newt Brigade (CVNB), a citizen science group, formed, the animals and migration paths along this road, what motivates us, how we are structured, why it works, and how we are working to install a wildlife crossing to save the lives of animals during their migration season.

Christyne Davidian has volunteered with the CVNB for 5 years, including 4 years as a Captain for a weekly team and over 2 years collecting viable dead samples for scientific study. Retired after 40+ years as a procurement and sourcing professional, Christyne is now focused using the knowledge of her degree in botany by creating native plant habitats at home, her love for birdwatching, while saving newts, endangered red-legged frogs, and other amphibians on Chileno Valley Road in Petaluma, CA. Wearing her newt costume for parades, pleas for fundraising, and other events brings the element of fun while promoting for help save some of the smallest creatures on earth.

World Salamander Day Outro

SAVE THE FROGS! Founder Dr. Kerry Kriger will close out the inaugural World Salamander Day with some final thoughts and a call to action. The event will end around 5:30pm Los Angeles time.