#4

For this blog I’m writing about the California red-legged frog or Rana draytonii. It is currently federally listed as threatened. Its primary habitat is marshes and wetlands along the coast of California. The California red-legged frog’s population is currently on the decline which gained it also the title of “vulnerable” which on a scale from extinct to least concern leans slightly to the least concern side. The biggest reason for the decline in population are habitat loss and destruction. A new predator was also introduced to its environment (a type of bullfrog) but its impact is negligible compared to the shrinking habitat. The most relevant and crucial part of the California red-legged frog for its ecosystem is funnily enough as prey. The San Francisco Garter Snake is listed as extinctly endangered which is pretty much as close as you can get to extinct without actually being extinct. The California red-legged frog is a primary food source for the garter snake population. There isn’t anything especially unique about the California red-legged frog, it’s no different from any other frog it just has red legs and happens to live in California. I think that while the animal I chose is indeed endangered on a federal level (not a state level), so as awful as it sounds it’s really not a battle worth dying for. At the end of the day there are so many other creatures that play a much bigger role in the respective ecosystems that this specific frog isn’t worth the time of a conservationist. (255)