An extirpated lineage of a threatened frog species resurfaces in southern California

Authors: Adam R Backlin; Jonathan Q Richmond; Elizabeth A Gallegos; Robert N Fisher; C Christensen
Contribution Number: 579
Abstract/Summary

The California red-legged frog Rana draytonii has been declining across its native range since the 1960s and was considered extirpated from most of southern California. In February 2017, a population of R. draytonii was re-discovered in the San Bernardino Mountains of Riverside County, California, where it has not been documented since 1959 (LACM 91074). This population belongs to a mtDNA lineage thought to be extinct from this species within the United States but still extant in Mexican populations. This discovery increases the potential for future, evolutionarily-informed translocations within the southern portion of this species range in California.

Publication details
Published Date: 2017-07-21
Outlet/Publisher: Oryx doi 10.1017/S0030605317001168
Media Format:

ARMI Organizational Units:
Southwest, Southern California - Biology
Topics:
Management; Species and their Ecology
Place Names:
Baja California; California; San Bernardino National Forest
Keywords:
amphibians; conservation
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