The tiny, gold-colored Kihansi spray toads do not live in Tanzania anymore.

They once flourished around a waterfall on the country's Kihansi River. But a hydroelectric dam project shut off much of the cascade in 2000, eliminating many of the toads. An outbreak of fungal disease rendered them extinct in the wild a few years later.

But there is one place where this fragile species still lives and thrives: the Toledo Zoo. The zoo took in 34 of the toads in 2002 as part of an effort to save them from extinction. Today there are more than 4,000. Zoo specialists are hopeful they can reintroduce the toads to their African homeland.

"This is one of the most exciting programs I've ever been involved in," said Andrew Odum, curator of herpetology and longtime zoo employee. "For our size, it's amazing what we've accomplished."

It hasn't been easy.

When the zoo received the toads eight years ago, keepers had little idea how to care for them. The creatures were discovered in 1998 and are known only to have lived on the less than five acres of vegetation surrounding the Kihansi River waterfall. They are also unusual because, instead of laying eggs, the female toads give birth to fully formed toadlets.

Although several zoos initially took on breeding the toads, only the Toledo Zoo and the Bronx Zoo in New York have been successful.

"You're dealing with this tiny little animal, and you have to cre-ate a very specialized habitat for them," Mr. Odum explained. "The husbandry was largely worked out here - it took years."

What finally emerged through trial and error was a complex system of light cycles, temperature changes, misting devices, specific foliage, and food production.

The toads consume hundreds of thousands of insects - fruit flies, springtails, and crickets - each week. Buying all those insects would be too expensive, so keepers have set up a virtual cricket factory where they spawn the toad's food. The insects have to be tiny, because baby toads are no bigger than a pinhead.

In addition to specialized food, the toads require a constant supply of moisture. In the two rooms housing the animals, misting equipment replicates the spray of the Tanzanian waterfall 22 hours a day. Keepers shut off the water only so the toads can eat and the insects don't get washed away.

Cleanliness is key to the toads' survival. They are kept in tanks in a bio-secure area. To get to them, keepers must disinfect themselves, change into scrubs and special shoes, and use a different pair of gloves for each cage they visit. These efforts are designed to prevent outbreaks and spread of potential diseases or fungus.

"When visitors walk past these toads, hopefully they stop and … read the sign about them," zoo spokesman Andi Norman said. "But they probably don't realize all the work and effort that's gone into preserving the species."

Spray-toad technician Patrick Turski is a keeper taking care of the toads. He's also in charge of counting them every month, a lengthy task. But he said he loves his job.

"It's very fun, it's interesting," he said. "It's an experience only a few people have in the world."

Mr. Odum said he knew the project was a success when he began getting e-mails from the keepers concerned with where to put the toads. He said if they continue reproducing at the same rate, the population at the zoo could reach 20,000 in two years.

Experts have other plans for the toads, however.

In February, specialists from the Toledo Zoo and the Bronx Zoo traveled to Tanzania to meet with amphibian experts, conservationists, and government bureaucrats to come up with a plan to repatriate the animals. Toledo is now getting ready to send several toads to the Tanzanian University of Dar es Salaam, where scientists will monitor the creatures in a controlled setting.

If all goes well, Mr. Odum said the toads will be reintroduced to their original habitat around the waterfall, where a special sprinkler system has been installed. He said he is optimistic the endeavor will succeed.

"This is something the people of Toledo can be proud of," he said. "Toledo is making a difference for an entire species, and the zoo is well known by the Tanzanians for the work that we've done."

Contact Claudia Boyd-Barrett at:

cbarrett@theblade.com

or 419-724-6272.

First Published April 10, 2010, 11:51 a.m.