Zoos Victoria has undertaken a breeding program to ensure survival of the species which commenced in 2010, and in October 2018 successfully collected the first eggs laid in captivity.

The species was described as Philoria frosti by Walter Baldwin Spencer in 1901,[2] honouring Charles Frost, an Australian naturalist.

[3] The specimens used in the species description (type series) were provided by Frost, an amateur herpetologist, who recovered five individuals that had been regurgitated by a tiger snake Notechis scutatus.

[5] At hatching, the tadpoles are creamy white and unpigmented, acquiring some colouration and eye pigmentation as they mature.

[citation needed] During winter, they inhabit the space beneath the snow and exhibit higher activity levels compared to many other frogs during colder periods.

Egg-laying occurs post-snowmelt, typically in mossy nests or within various crevices, occasionally as deep as one meter below the surface among rocks.

In order to save the frog from extinction, a self-sustaining captive breeding program was commenced, with Zoos Victoria taking the lead.