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(Rana sylvatica) Special Concern
Identification: Dark “mask” on each side of face; ridge along each side of back; hind toes webbed; usually a light stripe along middle of back; skin relatively smooth; head and body length up to about 83 mm (3.3 inches).
Mature male: base of
innermost toe on front feet swollen; averages slightly smaller and darker than
adult female; expanded vocal sacs, one on each side, extend above front
legs.
Breeding call : A
rapid series of 1–8 (usually 3–5) rough clacking notes (a chorus sounds somewhat
like a group of softly quacking domestic ducks).
Larvae: Upper side with blackish and olive-gray
pigment; sides shiny bronze or pinkish; eyes high on head; tail fin high,
strongly arched on top, with dark spots and blotches; usually 2-3 rows od tiny
teeth on upper lip, 3-4 rows on lower lip; up to about 52 mm (2 inches)
long.
| Eggs: deposited in large globular masses about
the size of a baseball or tennis ball and usually including several
hundred eggs; usually attached to sedges in shallow water, often on north
side of pond.
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Colorado
Distribution: Mountains surrounding North Park;
upper tributaries of the Colorado River in Grand County; upper Laramie River
drainage in Larimer County. Mainly at elevations of 7,900-9,800 feet. Locally
fairly common in suitable habitat.
Habitat: Subalpine zone, in marshes, bogs,
pothole ponds, beaver ponds, lakes, stream borders, wet meadows, willow
thickets, and forests (lodgepole pine, spruce, fir, or aspen) bordering these
habitats.
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Life History:
Breeds in shallow ponds,
mainly in May-June. Breeding ponds often contain thick sedges and may dry
up in summer. Larvae metamorphose into small frogs usually in July and
August
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