Expedition to a Frog Museum

With Froglife staff and trustees likely to add to their own collections of frog-inspired gifts this Christmas, guest blogger Charlie Roscoe informed us about a collection to beat all them all.

Some of Froglife's favourite frogs - the knitted stars of our Christmas card

Charlie is a biology graduate of Bristol University, recently studying purple-faced langurs in Sri Lanka and tracking bison around the forest of Białowieża, Poland. Aside from this interest in rather large and hairy forest residents, her frog fixation lead her to a Polish Frog Museum. Charlie shares her adventure below.

"Frog fanatics of Eastern Europe have really gone the full mile in promoting amphibian awareness; the Muzeum Żaby in Kudowa-Zdrój is a truly eclectic collection of all things froggy. Literally translating to “frog museum”, the small gallery exhibits all the expected specimens and displays, but has something extra special lurking in its depths.

Guests are advised before arrival to bring for donation their favourite froggy item, which is integrated into the mounting stash of ornaments, cuddly toys, cups, clocks, pictures, and more, all sharing one overwhelmingly green theme: Frogs. They’re stacked floor to ceiling and the sheer quantity shows how much the Polish nation loves these little hoppers.

The quirky frog museum is as much of a curiosity as a naturalist’s educational tool; with displays on a variety of species including the Pool Frog that was recently, and so far successfully, reintroduced to Norfolk. Prominent conservation issues are truly brought to life here through the donation of everyday commercial objects; effectively making science a more memorable, interactive and exciting experience.

All just another leap in the right direction for reptile and amphibian protection, thanks to charismatic global icons such as Kermit and Freddie!”

• You can find view a range of colourful pictures from Muzeum Żaby here
• There’s more about the museum (in Polish) here
• And you can find out more about the Kudowa-Zdrój area in English here
• You can view the Froglife collection of all things froggy on our Facebook page here and also add pictures from your own froggy collection!

You can do your bit to help conserve frogs by becoming a Froglife friend from just 34p a week. Click here to find out more about supporting Froglife’s work.

Last chance to enter our musical raffle!

Need a last minute gift idea, or an exciting day out in the New Year to look forward to? Entering Froglife’s raffle could be just the ticket!

With support from the Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company, the draw will be at the Grim’s Dyke Hotel in Middlesex on New Year’s Eve and tickets are available from Froglife until 5pm on Thursday 22nd December.

We have some wonderful raffle prizes for your £2 ticket that have been very generously donated:

• An opera package with the Grim's Dyke Country Hotel in London
• A family ticket on a fantastic amphibious bus with the London Duck Tours
• Entry for two for Hampton Court Palace
• Entry for two at London Zoo or Whipsnade thanks to the Zoological Society of London
• Two tickets for a production at the Harrow Arts Centre thanks to Harrow Council
• Two tickets for Kew Royal Botanic Gardens

The Grim's Dyke Country Hotel

The beautiful Grim’s Dyke hotel was the home of Sir William Gilbert of Gilbert and Sullivan fame, and Froglife’s Great Crested Newt Revisited project helped the hotel with some restoration work on their lake to improve the local habitat.

Tickets for the raffle are just £2 each and available from:

• The Froglife website here or by calling the office on 01733 558844 until 5pm on the 22nd of December
• Or from reception at the Grim's Dyke Hotel until the draw on New Year’s Eve.

All the proceeds from the tickets will help support Froglife’s work in 2012.

A big thank you to all the organisations supporting the draw, and good luck to everyone that enters!

Photo: Sivi Sivanesan