This species (Rana aurora draytonii) was first brought to the attention of California’s general public through Mark Twain’s short story, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. Not only is this frog species famous in the literary world, but it is also well known in the political sphere because of its Threatened status under the Endangered Species Act.

The California red-legged frog is the largest native frog in the western United States. This frog species requires wetland or riparian habitats in order to sustain viable populations, and is now only found within 10% of its historic habitat. Today, the frog is found in fewer than 250 streams across California. The loss of habitat is due to a number of reasons, including but not limited to:

• Habitat destruction
• Urban encroachment
• Stream degradation
• Isolated populations
• Predation from invasive species
  
  

Photo by U.S. Geological Survey (Public domain)

The California red-legged frog was hunted during the 1800s and 1900s, with 80,000 frogs harvested annually. Once the population declined, the bullfrog was introduced to fill that economic and ecological gap. Unfortunately, bullfrogs out-competed with and preyed on the red-legged frog, which continues to this day.

The decline of the California red-legged frog is an indicator that there is a decline in species diversity and riparian environments that are key to clean water and the survival of other aquatic species. To combat these threats, the California red-legged frog was federally listed and classified as a Threatened species on the Endangered Species List in May of 1996. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has a Recovery Plan, published in 2000, that is supposed to reestablish populations of the frog and set aside critical habitat that will hopefully reduce the many threats that the California red-legged frog faces today.

(Photo, public domain)

Sources

“California Red-Legged Frog” Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. Accessed 25 January 2015. Web. http://www.parksconservancy.org/conservation/plants-animals/endangered-species/red-legged-frog.html 

“California Red-Legged Frog” National Wildlife Federation. National Wildlife Federation. 1996. Web. 25 January 2015. http://www.nwf.org/wildlife/wildlife-library/amphibians-reptiles-and-fish/california-red-legged-frog.aspx 

“Critical Habitat Designated for California Red-Legged Frog” Pacific Region News Release. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. 6 March 2001. Web. 25 January 2015. http://www.fws.gov/pacific/news/2001/2001-43.htm 

Twain, Mark. The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County and Other Sketches. London: George Routledge and Sons. The Broadway Ludgate. Pp 9-20. 1867.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2002. Recovery Plan for the California Red-legged Frog (Rana aurora draytonii). U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Portland, Oregon. viii + 173 pp.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "The California Red-Legged Frog," a fact sheet included with the "Draft Recovery Plan for the California Red-Legged Frog (Rana aurora draytonii)." Portland, Oregon. The Service, 2000. Web. http://scplweb.santacruzpl.org/ref/endang/rana.shtml