Vulnerable frog species breeding in NSW

A threatened frog species is back in business in southern NSW after taking a break from breeding for 40 years.

The low-growling call of the southern bell frog has been recorded at the previously drought-affected Yarradda Lagoon on the Murrumbidgee River near Griffith, which was pumped full of water in 2014.

Dr Skye Wassens, a Charles Sturt University ecologist, said southern bell frogs hadn't bred in the area since the 1970s.

"The frogs probably came in through the irrigation canals," she said.

"While creating natural reconnections is still the top priority, using pumps to fill wetlands may be particularly beneficial for frogs because pumping tends to exclude adult carp from wetlands."

Last year her team recorded inland banjo frogs breeding there for the first time.

"It was a big investment to upgrade the infrastructure and supply the water, but it appears to have paid off," said Dr Wassens.