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Exploring the beautiful nature of California


California Nature:  Endangered Amphibians


There are a number of different endangered animals in the state of California. These species are identified at both a federal and state level. Identifying endangered animals focuses efforts to maintain the integrity of the natural world. To this end, the federal and state governments have instituted a number of laws enforced throughout California. The state has a particular challenge beyond many others in that it must maintain a strong balance within its diverse ecosystems.

Endangered animals are those species that are in danger of going extinct. Their reproductive rates are lower than their mortality rates over long periods of time, so their numbers are diminishing. The reasons for this are varied, but lately, very often involves a loss of habitat as people encroach on their living areas. When a species is listed as endangered or threatened, it is not a death sentence.
the California tiger salamander is an endangered amphibian in California nature Many animals, like the bald eagle and the American alligator, were on the brink of extinction and are now recovering. Many species, however, will not recover, and could be lost forever. Throughout time, animal species have been going extinct (long before people evolved); paleontologists estimate that well over 90 percent of all plant and animal species that ever existed have gone extinct.

California has 309 different species listed as endangered animals, the most of any state next to Hawaii. 303 of these species are found within the state, while six listed animals are not. Three species, such as the Canadian lynx, are considered endangered by other states, but not California. Examples of endangered California animals include the short-tailed albatross, the Mount Hermon June beetle, the Shasta crayfish, the Fresno kangaroo rat, the blunt-nose leopard lizard, the northern spotted owl, the chinook California coastal salmon, the leatherback sea turtle, the San Francisco garter snake and the humpback whale. There are currently 12 species and subspecies of amphibians listed as either threatened or endangered by the State of California or the federal government.
With its wide mouth charmingly outlined in yellow, the California tiger salamander always looks like it’s smiling. But this beautiful amphibian is a discriminating species that can only thrive in unique, and now extremely rare, habitats. As California’s vernal pools, grasslands and oak woodlands disappear, the tiger salamander has fewer and fewer reasons to grin. The species’ plight is particularly extreme in Sonoma County, where development threatens 95 percent of remaining salamander habitat, and the Santa Barbara population, although it was luckily listed as federally endangered in 2000,  is still on the verge of winking out.

California Tiger Salamanders are considerably large for today’s amphibians. The male can reach 8.5 inches long and the females 7 inches. The adults are stocky with round heads, protruding black eyes and long tails that curl around their body.  They are slick, glistening black with yellowish spots and stripes on their back, sides and tail.  These markings slightly resemble those of a tiger and earn the species their name.  This yellowish color also outlines their wide mouth, which gives the appearance of broad painted smile. 
The California red-legged frog is endangered in California nature Approximately 500 desert salamanders are known to exist in a very limited area. It eats flies and ants and is believed to also eat arthropods. Breeding and courtship habits are unknown. Desert Slender salamanders will wind up like a spring if threatened and may flip its tail high in the air. If the predator seizes the tail it will thrash around giving the salamander a distraction to try to run away. Only one population of desert slender salamanders has been confirmed. It exists in Hidden Palms Canyon in the Santa Rosa Mountains, Riverside County.

Desert Slender salamanders are lungless and "breathe" through their skin which must remain moist at all times. They are about 3.1-5 cm long with a tail about the same length. The Desert Slender salamander has silver or brass-colored flecks speckle its back, and its lighter-colored belly and throat have a maroon or chocolate-brown cast. It has a relatively broad head. The pale gray brown tail sharply contrasts with the Desert Slender salamander's belly.
Experts agree: Mark Twain’s favorite amphibian, “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County,” is none other than the California red-legged frog. Once so common it was a staple cuisine, California’s largest native frog has now lost 90 percent of its historic population.

The California Red-legged Frog is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. It is classified as threatened in California. A wide variety of factors contributed to the precipitous decline in California Red-legged Frog populations. The species, which once ranged over much of California from Point Reyes to the Sierra foothills and south to Baja California, can no longer be found in 70 percent of its former range and now survives in fewer than 250 streams in central coastal California.

Placer mining in the 1800s, which resulted in clogged and muddy streams, dealt the first blow. Later, the frog was heavily harvested for food, and it is estimated that some 80,000 frogs were killed per year. The non-native Bullfrog was introduced when the Red-legged population declined, and the new frog furthered the native frog’s decline by preying on it.
 
 
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