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Meet Mark Twain’s frog at Mori Point

The California red-legged frog, a.k.a Mark Twain’s frog, may be the largest-sized frog in the West, but it’s numbers have shrunk to paltry sum. They now inhabit a smattering of select coastal ranges from Mendocino County to Baja California.

One of those spots is Mori Point, a sliver of land to the north of Pacifica that juts out into the ocean. The salt-sprayed property is part of the federal Golden Gate National Restoration Area and restoration efforts have helped keep the species alive, along with its endangered predator, the San Francisco garter snake.

The frogs have been central to the long standing debate over Sharp Park Golf Course to the north, where environmentalists contend that management of the range is destroying frog eggs. Wild Equity Institute has been trying to build public support for the endangered frogs (with the aim to shut down the golf course and turn the land into a park) and recently led a tour of prime Mori Point frog habitat.

Building public awareness of California red-leggeds is a funny thing. Back in the day the hefty sized frogs, which reach bigger than 5 inches in length, used to be a familiar item on the menus of San Francisco’s finest dining establishments, and were a staple diet of the Forty-Niners during the Gold Rush. They were also competitive athletes in jumping frog races, and became a literary sensation in Mark Twain’s short story, “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.”

Now it’s habitat destruction that’s doing in this charismatic amphibian.

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Christine Kelly is a Bay Nature editorial intern. 

Rare Plant Persists in Salty Soils at Livermore Preserve

In the highly alkaline, salty soils of Springtown Preserve near Livermore, few annuals can make it through the hot, dry summer months. But the Palmate bracted bird’s-beak has found a way.

The member of the snapdragon family (Cordylanthus) secretes out salt, which collects as crystals on its leaves. A deep root system allows it to go on growing in the hot, dry months after most other annuals have died.

Still, habitat destruction and the encroachment of non-natives have reduced the California native to just six remaining locations. Springtown Preserve has 80 percent of the endangered plant’s genetic diversity.

“The preserve is the No. 1 botanical hotspot in the East Bay,” said Lech Naumovich, director of the Golden Hour Restoration Institute.

Invasive grass in competition with the Palmate-bracted bird’s-beak.

Naumovich led a team of volunteers out to Springtown earlier this month to survey the number of Palmate bracted bird’s beak. Using GPS equipment to survey roughly half the area, the team found 16 Palmates and nine Hispid bird’s beak, a close relative.

Volunteers flagging colonies in the preserve.

Naumovich said non-native grasses are taking hold in Springtown preserve and changing the soil composition to make it less saline, imperiling the Palmate’s survival. The grasses are also killing off nesting sites for ground nesting bees, which are the Palmate’s main pollinator.

Springtown preserve is owned by the city of Livermore and is open to the public. Visitors should tread lightly, stay on paths, and avoid stepping on the Palmate and other sensitive plant species.

A damselfly lands on another of Springtown’s native plants — the iodine bush. Photos by Christine Kelly.

Christine Kelly is a Bay Nature editorial intern.