- Pacific Tree Frog, Pseudacris regilla (also known as Hyla regilla). Credit: Gary Nafis, www.californiaherps.com
Right on schedule for the spring equinox, Pseudacris regilla arrived several days ago in my backyard pond here in Portland, Oregon. I haven’t seen him yet, but I hear him every night inviting females to join him in his half wine barrel. He belongs to the only species in the West that ribbets. It’s a sound so classic that sound technicians often use it in movie soundtracks. The calls are now a daily reminder for me to put aside work and fix dinner. Later, they drown out city noise, invite me to imagine wilder places, and lull me into sleep.
Our first Pacific Tree tadpoles came several years ago as stowaways from Hughes Water Nursery. True to their kind, they grew up fast, left their water phase behind, and disappeared into drier habitat. But now every spring, at least one frog reappears.
I’ve always had a soft spot for amphibians. My father indulged me one spring with the best Easter basket I’ve ever received -a mass of frog eggs in a fishbowl. I’m not sure what species they were. My mother, also a lover of amphibians and reptiles, helped me gather fresh pond water from the University of Washington arboretum to freshen our egg mass every week. We watched the eggs hatch and grow into tadpoles. My mother claims we took such good care of them that we only lost a few. Honestly, I was too young to remember much. It’s one of those family stories where the telling provides the memories. What I remember most are mixed feelings of pride and sadness when we took the maturing tadpoles to my favorite pond in the arboretum and released them.
- Water lily sprouts and decaying vegetation: good hiding places for the frog when he gets back from hunting in the evening.
As far as I’ve been able to tell, we haven’t had eggs in our pond in Portland yet. I had high hopes one spring after hearing the deafening calls of what I assume was amplexus. But the blue jays or cats might have heard it too. After a few days, we heard a lone male calling for a mate again.
Wonderful photographs and information on Pacific Tree Frogs can be found at Mr. Toad and California Herps. Both also feature recordings of different kinds of calls.
Pacific Tree Frogs are not listed as a species of concern at this point. But experts suggest keeping an eye on them as indicators. They rely on vernal or ephemeral ponds (a clever way of avoiding the predators that frequent more permanent ponds) for reproduction. Scientists suspect these unique habitats may be especially vulnerable to climate change.
I have a few questions about Pacific Tree Frogs I haven’t been able to answer yet. How far do the frogs travel from water after reproducing? Where do they go? How do they survive urban habitats? Do individuals return to the same pond year after year? How long do they live? If you can answer these questions or have any other feedback, i’d love to hear from you.
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