Birds are a big draw for visitors to the magnificent Billy Frank Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, but frogs also put on a show there that is not-to-be missed. And I am not just referring to the loudest, largest, most boisterous (and invasive) American Bullfrogs. I am referring to the tiny, vocal and colorful native Pacific Tree Frogs.
On a recent October birding trip I led to the refuge, the first few Pacific Tree Frogs that our group saw clung to a metal railing at the Nisqually refuge visitor center. Later we found them plastered to leaves all over the refuge.
Pacific Tree Frogs pseudacris regilla, are the smallest, most common frogs found on the west coast. All have diagnostic dark brown eye stripes that extend from their nose to eye to shoulder and have oversized toe pads that enable them to climb trees and adhere to surfaces.
Like chameleons, Pacific Tree Frogs can change colors to blend in with their surroundings and thus hide from predators. They can morph from shades of green to brown and gray tones.
You can find this species from Baja California in the south to British Columbia in the north and east to Montana. It resides in typical amphibian environs such as ponds, streams, marshes and wetlands. I even found one inside a porta-potty!
When I attempted to transfer it outdoors, it employed its sticky toe pads to resist. Then it eluded me with a series of hops. Finally, it exited when I opened the door to the outside environment.
The classic “Ribbit” call you often hear outside in west coast wetlands is the call of the Pacific Tree (or Chorus) Frog. It has been recorded and used in Hollywood movie sound tracks to convey an atmosphere of nature and creatures in the wild.
These diminutive frogs feed on snails, spiders and insects. Hawks, herons, raccoons, skunks, mink, otter and even Giant Water Bugs feed on them. It is a good thing they are abundant! Thankfully, their conservation status is “a species of least concern.”
I urge people to “look up!” (my book’s title) to experience nature. As my wife reminds me, looking down can yield impressive sightings too, like these tiny frogs. If you are fortunate you might even find one of the larger and much rarer Red-legged Frogs at Nisqually refuge.
