New bridge in Prince George park is for frogs and other tiny critters

As the song goes, it’s not easy being green.

But a new bridge that spans an amphibian migration trail in a Prince George city park is expected to give tiny salamanders, toads and frogs a fighting chance at survival each summer.

Humans with their heavy boots and shoes will now be able to use the bridge to walk above the trail and avoid squashing the helpless newborn critters as they move from lake to forest every July and August.

The eight-metre-long bridge is on the northwest shore of Shane Lake in Forests for the World, a large nature park that’s home to black bears, moose and deer — and at the smaller end of the wildlife spectrum, to long-toed salamanders, western toads, wood frogs and Columbia spotted frogs.

In a co-operative project involving the City of Prince George, local company Nahanni Construction and others, work on the bridge wrapped up Nov. 12.

Ashley Sutherland had signs installed at various locations in Forests for the World park in Prince George, B.C., to raise awareness among park users about trying not to step on tiny frogs and other amphibians around Shane Lake. (Jason Peters/CBC)

One of the “others” is Prince George resident Ashley Sutherland. She’s a forester by trade, not an amphibian specialist, and she was the first to bring attention to the trampling deaths after a walk with her dogs around Shane Lake in early August 2022.

“I observed it for myself and, honestly, it made me angry,” Sutherland said. “I went back to the parking lot. I emailed the city, and yeah, that’s the ‘Why’ behind this. It made me angry that nobody was doing anything about it,” she said.

Sutherland said she didn’t expect to be the person who would take up the cause. But, that’s what happened. And with support from local and even provincial partners, she eventually got signs put up in the park to create awareness about the trampling issue.

Now, the bridge is in place, and in use.

From Sutherland’s perspective, it’s an example of what can be accomplished when people or groups put their energy together to solve a problem.

“[The bridge] means real partnership with the City of P.G., and it means doing the right thing,” she said.

“With that city partnership, and with so many organizations and individuals involved, it’s unreal to be a part of a real change.”

Western toads, wood frogs and Columbia spotted frogs are among the creatures that use amphibian migration trails around Shane Lake in Forests for the World park in Prince George, B.C. This photo was taken near the edge of the lake. (Submitted by Ashley Sutherland)

Small size, green colour a risky combination

When the salamanders, toads and frogs of Shane Lake migrate during that stretch of time in July and August, they don’t just do it by the dozens.

Sutherland says they move in the thousands, and that their tiny size and colour can make them difficult to see, which puts them at high risk of being stepped on by trail users.

“Our data from 2025 suggested that the main loop trail around the lake saw mortality as high as 12.8 per cent,” Sutherland said, noting that not all of those deaths would have been from trampling.

In the bigger ecological picture around Shane Lake, Sutherland says helping the resident amphibians survive their migration from lake to woods is additionally important because only one in about every 100 make it to full maturity.

“So while we see thousands on the trail here, that’s not necessarily a sign that amphibian populations are doing well in terms of reproductive capabilities,” she said.

A total cost estimate for the bridge wasn’t available, but according to Dean Price of Nahanni Construction, the City of Prince George paid about 30 per cent of the bill and the rest was covered by donations.

Michael Le Morvan from the City of Prince George parks department calls the project “wonderful,” and says a second bridge at another amphibian crossing is already in the works.

“We are planning to do another one, probably 100 metres from here,” he said.