New Zealand

From New Zealand Post:   Aotearoa New Zealand’s native Leiopelma frogs diverged from all other frogs over 200 million years ago, making them the most ancient group of frogs on the planet. Before humans settled here, there were six Leiopelma frog species distributed throughout the North and South Islands. These special amphibians have been severely impacted by habitat loss and introduced predators, and three have already become extinct.  With illustrations by Sarah Greig, the four stamps in this issue highlight the Leiopelma genus.  Fossil records show that our native frogs were spread throughout the North and South Islands several thousand years ago. The three remaining native species have declined significantly in range and numbers over the past 1,000 to 2,000 years, as land has been cleared of forest and predators have been introduced. Native frogs/pepeketua belong to the genus Leiopelma, an ancient and primitive group of frogs that has changed very little in 70 million years. You can learn more about these special creatures on the Department of Conservation's website.  For the development of the Native Frogs stamps we partnered with NZFrogs. Their website and a newly published book provide all you need to know about Archey's frog, Hamilton’s frog and Hochstetter's frog - our surviving native frogs which feature on the stamps.