On a sweltering October day, wildlife biologist Wendy Hanophy searched the muddy shores of the Aurora Reservoir for the elusive northern leopard frog, a species whose presence, or absence, carries significant weight in an ongoing battle against proposed oil and gas development. While a raccoon’s tracks marked the damp earth and a killdeer’s cry echoed overhead, the amphibian remained hidden, likely seeking refuge from the heat in the surrounding wetlands, a behavior that highlights its vulnerability. These frogs, designated as an indicator species, are notoriously difficult to locate, count, and monitor, making them exceptionally susceptible to habitat disturbances.

Hundreds of Aurora residents, alongside Hanophy, a retired Colorado Parks and Wildlife employee, are now pinning their hopes on this imperiled amphibian to influence state regulators and prevent Crestone Peak Resources Operating LLC from constructing one of Colorado’s largest oil and gas pads on a former bombing range. This proposed 35-acre site, slated for the Lowry Ranch, lies less than a mile from the reservoir and the rapidly growing Denver suburban communities it serves. Hanophy explained the frogs’ need to range widely, stating, "They have to eat, and they don’t stay in the reservoir for that. They are foraging all up and around these areas." Their dispersal can extend up to three miles after breeding, underscoring the interconnectedness of their habitat.

Indeed, the critical role of these frogs in the local ecosystem was recently confirmed by herpetologists hired by a local residents’ group. These experts discovered three northern leopard frogs just uphill from where Hanophy was searching, in close proximity to the proposed drilling site. This finding emerged after state officials had already identified "Oil & Gas Exploration & Extraction" as a significant threat to the species in their 2025 wildlife action plan, categorizing the amphibian as requiring "conservation interventions most urgently." The dwindling numbers of northern leopard frogs have also drawn the attention of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is participating in a case study aimed at restoring their habitat northwest of Denver. Early research indicates the four-inch-long frog is considered a species of "greatest conservation need" across many Western states and is often classified as sensitive, threatened, or endangered.

The proposed 32-well State Sunlight/Long pad is part of a larger development plan for the Lowry Ranch, a vast 26,000-acre property owned and managed by the State Land Board. This picturesque area, situated approximately 25 miles southeast of downtown Denver, is increasingly surrounded by expanding suburbs. The State Land Board itself acknowledged the vital need for undisturbed habitat in its "2050 Stewardship Framework," echoing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s concerns. This framework specifically identified the ranch’s Piedmont grasslands as supporting "several species of conservation concern that require habitat components that are unique and rare." Despite these findings, the land board has leased the property to Civitas Resources, Crestone’s parent company, granting them drilling rights, with state regulators tasked with approving the specific well locations.

The northern leopard frog is not the first species to halt or significantly alter industrial projects. Historically, various imperiled species have successfully intervened in development plans. The Braken Bat Cave meshweaver spider, for instance, brought highway construction to a standstill in San Antonio, Texas. In West Virginia, concerns over the Indiana bat delayed a multimillion-dollar wind farm, and in Ohio, the endangered snuffbox mussel halted bridge construction over the Grand River. Even efforts by the Trump administration to improve water infrastructure in California were impeded by the delta smelt.

Surveys conducted by consultants for Crestone have documented the presence of northern leopard frogs near the proposed Sunlight/Long pad location over the past decade. These surveys, filed with state regulators prior to a significant November 19 hearing, noted the amphibians in creek beds near the site between 2012 and 2015, and again in 2018. More recent surveys in 2024 and this year have led consultants to conclude that these creek beds may serve as crucial overwintering grounds for the frogs. Researchers for Save the Aurora Reservoir (STAR), a 2,400-member residents’ organization, reported observing three frogs in the area this past fall, concluding in a September 22 report that these repeated sightings "seems to indicate a stable population at this site." The researchers from Adaptation LLC, hired by STAR, further suggested that the site is likely part of a larger, and not fully understood, metapopulation, potentially connecting this frog population to other breeding grounds in the region.

To safeguard this frog population, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials proposed an alternative location for the oil and gas pad in a September 30 letter to the Energy & Carbon Management Commission, suggesting it would better protect the frog by preserving more of its habitat. However, Colorado Parks and Wildlife biologist Brandon Marette acknowledged in his letter to Commission Director Julie Murphy that such an alternative is not feasible due to Arapahoe County regulations requiring oil and gas operations to be situated at least 3,000 feet from reservoirs. Marette also emphasized the precarious state of northern leopard frog populations in the western U.S., noting that groups in the proposed drilling region are "fragmented and limited and existing threats are likely to significantly increase in scope and/or severity within ten years."

Consequently, Marette recommended mitigation measures to steer frogs away from an access road designed to accommodate numerous truck trips daily to the proposed pad. This access road will be situated a mere 500 feet from the reservoir, raising serious concerns about "fatalities resulting from truck and vehicle traffic." The biologist requested that state regulators mandate Crestone to construct the pad and conduct road improvements between December 1 and February 28, coinciding with the frogs’ hibernation period. Additionally, Colorado Parks and Wildlife requested weekly "windshield surveys" from March to November to document any frog mortalities on the road, with Crestone’s consultants required to report any deceased amphibians.

The northern leopard frog’s critical role in the decision-making process is evident in Director Julie Murphy’s recommendation to the Energy & Carbon Management Commission regarding the Sunlight/Long pad. The amphibian is mentioned approximately 90 times in her comprehensive 265-page report. Murphy noted that Crestone has agreed to time construction with the frog’s hibernation, conduct pre-disturbance surveys, and install silt fences to guide amphibians towards culverts that will pass under the access road. Crestone, in a prehearing statement, acknowledged concerns about the frogs and noted that its mitigation measures incorporate findings from the Adaptation report. Jamie Jost, an attorney representing Crestone, asserted in the statement that the Parks and Wildlife consultation letter demonstrates "Crestone’s extensive protection of wildlife resources" and should be relied upon by the commission.

Meanwhile, habitat disturbance is already progressing on other sections of the Lowry Ranch. State energy regulators have approved several multiwell pads as part of a broader comprehensive area plan that could ultimately encompass up to 166 wells across eight locations by 2030. Residents in neighborhoods bordering the ranch’s southern edge formed STAR in 2022 to protest drilling near their homes when Crestone initially submitted its development plan. The group’s concerns regarding pollution, seismic activity, noise, and traffic brought national attention to Colorado’s 2019 mission change, which mandates the state’s energy agency to prioritize public health, safety, and the environment over fossil fuel company profits. This shift led to the promulgation of extensive new regulations, with 17 rulemaking periods and 426 pages of rules implemented to support this mandate.

STAR’s advocacy has demonstrably influenced how the energy commission considers community concerns, with thousands of comments submitted in opposition to the Sunlight/Long pad. This public outcry prompted the commission to hold a rare public hearing within the affected community in September. STAR, represented by legal counsel, became the first residents’ organization to formally present its case before the commission in 2024 and is slated to testify again on November 19. The nonprofit continues to test the limits of Colorado’s new oil and gas regulations, challenging in its prehearing statements how Crestone has complied with requirements for wildlife protection plans.

Mike Foote, an attorney for STAR, argued in prehearing statements that "Wildlife resources are to be protected to the same extent as people and the environment." He further contended that neither Crestone’s mitigation plan nor the Parks and Wildlife consultation report adequately considered alternative locations to "avoid adverse impacts to the (frogs) in the first place." Despite the agreed-upon mitigation measures between Crestone, state wildlife officials, and oil and gas regulators, Hanophy, the retired biologist, remains apprehensive. She believes that potential pollution, noise, vibrations that could disrupt breeding, general land disturbance, and increased traffic could still prove detrimental to the amphibians. "If they can’t get from point A to point B, that’s one population that could crash," Hanophy warned, standing on a bike path encircling the Aurora Reservoir. She added, "Extinction usually isn’t immediate—it happens slowly, and then quickly, and you get to a point where a population can’t take care of itself."