Pacific Tree Frog

I would like to bring the readers’ attention to the need to protect the last few remaining refuges for the Pacific tree frog to breed in.

The Pacific tree frog (Hyla regilla) is frequently found in seasonal fresh-water frog habitats that are typically undergoing tertiary succession. The maturity of the wooded frog ponds of California is well established and virtually every niche in these diverse semi-aquatic communities is occupied by both the indigenous and the non-indigenous life forms. On occasion, a human will visit a frog pond.

The California Coastal Commission and the Department of Fish and Game refuse to recognize the need to save the Pacific tree frog ponds. They based their decision on their ignorance because no one knows how many tree frogs there are supposed to be. This is a matter of interpretation for the bureaucratic specialists and experts to conjure for a small fee. They will observe the decimation of the Pacific tree frog environs, and eventually a publicly minded frog fancier will bring this to the attention of the public agency involved. How many tree frogs have to die before the bureaucrats put the Pacific tree frog on their most honorable endangered species list?

TIMOTHY GRADY

Carmel