California Red-legged Frog (Rana draytonii)

About California Red-legged Frog (Rana draytonii)

• Kingdom: Animals
• Phylum: Chordates
• Class: Amphibians
• Order: Toads and Frogs
• Family: Typical Frogs

Many factors are contributing to the decline of R. draytonii populations, the main being habitat destruction and degradation. Introduced predators and perhaps disease have also contributed to the decline of this species.

This species has been extirpated from 99% of its Sierra Nevada range and is believed to be extinct in the Central Valley. Breeding populations remain along the coast, from San Mateo County to San Luis Obispo County. In 1996, it was declared a threatened species and over 4 million acres of habitat were designated as critical. However, in 2006 developers sued and 90% of that habitat designation was lost.

Now that has been partially remedied, thanks to legal action by the Center for Biological Diversity. As of March 16, 2010, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service has designated 1.6 million acres of habitat as critical, and the agency has acknowledged that the earlier reduction was flawed because of political interference from the Bush Administration.

AmphibiaWeb © 2000-2011 The Regents of the University of California