Froggies: Good News for the Sierra

[Harlen]

Jim F wrote:

...I observed a half dozen people scattered along the shore. They seemed to be involved in some scholarly activity. They were!-capturing garter snakes. But they said their primary interest was frogs.
In the field these researchers gently manipulated the snakes to induce regurgitation of gastric contents. Were there frogs in the stomach contents? That was the focus.

Snakes and Frogs! The snakes we saw here (there were about 6) never even looked at the mix of tadpoles and pollywogs. I reckon it was an endless, all-you-can-eat buffet, and they were glutted.
(The frogs are Chorus frogs, not Yellow-legged.)

The snakes were Mountain Garter Snakes, aka: Thamnophis elegans elegans.

[SSSdave]

Although there has been considerable discussion and news on Sierra Nevada amphibians in the past, almost all of it talks exclusively about "Yellow-Legged Frogs" as though that is all there is. In fact, in my experience, there have always been many more Sierran Treefrog - Pseudacris sierra and Pacific Treefrog - Pseudacris regilla, in most environments. The differences between some of the species may be difficult unless one is an expert and many toads look like frogs.

These frog species inhabit at least parts of the Sierra Nevada. The link has range maps.

https://californiaherps.com/frogs/frogs.html

California Red-legged Frog - Rana draytonii
Northern Leopard Frog - Lithobates pipiens
Foothill Yellow-legged Frog - Rana boylii
Southern Mountain Yellow-legged Frog - Rana muscosa
Sierra Nevada Yellow-legged Frog - Rana sierrae

Baja California Treefrog - Pseudacris hypochondriaca hypochondriaca
Pacific Treefrog - Pseudacris regilla
Sierran Treefrog - Pseudacris sierra

Boreal Toad - Anaxyrus boreas boreas
California Toad - Anaxyrus boreas halophilus
Yosemite Toad - Anaxyrus canorus

[grampy]

Thanks Dave, for your post (and the accompanying link, which is also informative).
And thanks to George Durkee for posting the article !

[Harlen]

Dave wrote:

...Although there has been considerable discussion and news on Sierra Nevada amphibians in the past, almost all of it talks exclusively about "Yellow-Legged Frogs" as though that is all there is. In fact, in my experience, there have always been many more Sierran Treefrog - Pseudacris sierra and Pacific Treefrog - Pseudacris regilla, in most environments.

It is the Mountain and Sierra Yellow-legged Frog populations which are listed as endangered species (correct gdurkee?), and hence they are the species biologists and conservation-minded people will be concentrating on. I found this note online:

"The mountain yellow-legged frog was once the most abundant amphibian in Southern California's Sierra Nevada and Transverse Ranges. Just decades ago, it was hard to walk around many of California's alpine lakes without tripping over these diminutive “mountain gnomes.”

But today these hardy survivors of freezing, high-elevation winters are vulnerable to a host of modern threats. In fact these frogs are extinct in more than 93 percent of their old mountain homes."

[wsp_scott]

Thanks for the article.

I think I saw a couple in the lake at 11200ish on the north side of Forester Pass a couple years ago.





And another one at Golden Bear Lake


I like frogs way better than snakes

[Dozer17]

It's a good thing. I am a lifelong dedicated fisherman and backpacker (52 years and counting), but it's wilderness not a trout farm. There's still plenty of places to fish.

Thanks for Sharing gdurkee