New Pond, Who Dis? 

June 18, 2024 – Yosemite National Park officials report that 250 California red-legged frogs (CRLF) were recently released throughout various sites in Yosemite Valley, a reintroduction strategy known as population augmentation.

The now one-year-old frogs arrived at the San Francisco Zoo , as eggs, in March last year. Under careful watch, they began metamorphosing into adults, this period of growth fueled by consuming 70,000 crickets a week.

Once past their most vulnerable stage, these individuals will hopefully diversify gene flow and aid migration within CRLF populations that are already self-sustaining, as evidenced by egg mass surveys conducted in Yosemite Valley earlier this year.

The outcomes of species reintroductions are never guaranteed, and with no evidence of CRLF living in Yosemite Valley for 50 years, it is truly exciting to see efforts initiated in 2016 having a lasting impact.

Though some individuals were slower to enter the water, most leapt out of their releasers hands and swam away without hesitation (cue ABBA- Slipping Through My Fingers). We hope to see this group of frogs flourish in their new homes and follow the trajectory of CRLF populations released in earlier reintroduction efforts.

Reintroduction work has been a collaborative effort between U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Fish and Wildlife,  NatureBridge,  San Francisco Zoo, and our Yosemite Conservancy donors.

Source & photos: NPS