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Amphibians
Salamanders (12)
Anurans (5)
Frogs (3) + 2 non-natives
Toads (2)
17 Total Natives
* rare or difficult to find.
+ listed, protected, or endangered
Reptiles
Crocodilians (0)
Lizards (10)
Snakes (20) + 1 non-native
Turtles (1) + multiple introductions
31 Total Natives
*rare or difficult to find
+ listed, protected, or endangered
Californiaherps.com
http://mvz.berkeley.edu
http://research.calacademy.org/herp
Range maps by Gary Naris
Mental Gland
Salamanders
Neoteny
Sexual maturity with juvenile morphology.
Dicamptodontidae
4 members of this family all in Northern
California and Pacific Northwest.
Some neoteny in this family.
Pleistocene fossil record.
Wide head, short, bushy gills, keratinized toes
large and fat, indistinct costal grooves,
vertically thick tail.
Habitat: Forest streams.
Name means double curved tooth
Ambystomatidae
Prominent costal grooves, toes wide at
base and tapering.
Tubercles on hind feet.
Adults and larva flat tail.
Larvae with prominent gills.
Habitat: Aquatic, grassland.
Diet: Invertebrates and vertebrates.
Name means cup-mouth
Northwestern Salamander*
Ambystoma gracile
Northwestern Salamander
Ambystoma gracile
Salt Point
Salamandridae
NOT A SALAMANADER
Newts have unique life cycle: Aquatic larvae to
terrestrial adult then alternating between aquatic adult
for breeding and terrestrial adult.
Description:costalgroovesessentiallyabsent.
Grainyskin:terrestrial;smooth:larvaandbreeding
aquaticadult.
Brightbellytowarnoftetrodotoxin.
Habitat:Aquatic,Forest
Diet:Invertebratesandvertebrates
Namemeanssalamander.
Rough-Skinned Newt
Taricha granulosa
Rough-Skinned Newt
Taricha granulosa
California Newt
Taricha torosa
Tilden Park; Redwood Regional Park; Briones; Gazos Creek; Corral Hollow
RangeinCalifornia: Red
Orange: Sierra Newt
Red-bellied Newt*
Taricha rivularis
Red-bellied Newt
Taricha rivularis
Plethodontidae
Large family of lungless salamanders;
breath through skin.
Live in most habitats.
No larval forms; complete development in
eggs. Some brood eggs.
Terrestrial.
Feed mostly on invertebrates.
Name means many teeth.
Yellow-eyed Ensatina
Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica
Ensatina (Integrade)
Ensatina e. xanthoptica
x oreganus
Ensatina Integrade
Ensatina e. xanthoptica x platensis
Yellow-eyed Ensatina
Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica
Yellow-eyed Ensatina
Ensatina eschscholtzii xanthoptica
Habitat: Wet Wooded areas, never suburban.
Where to look: under logs and rocks road crossing during
rainy nights.
No Larval form.
Food: invertebrates.
Color variation: markings variable from pale to dark.
Additional Comments: Pronounced yellow in upper iris.
Hybrid forms lack yellow or have reduced yellow.
Mimics Taricha coloration for protection. May stand tall on
all fours to exaggerate size.
Broods eggs.
Genetics distinction between northern and southern
populations of E.e.xanthopica.
Black Salamander*
Aneides niger*
Black Salamander*
Aneides niger
Gazos Creek
Habitat: Often found in transition zones.
between wet woodlands and grassy
meadows.
Where to look: under logs and rocks.
No Larvae.
Food: invertebrates.
Color variation: Typically solid black
including ventral region, but may show
some green blotching in young.
Additional Comments: Recently
reclassified; distinct from northern species.
Once thought locally extinct.
Lay suspended eggs which they brood.
Arboreal Salamander
Aneides lugubris
Arboreal Salamander
Aneides lugubris
Merritt Campus, Mt. Diablo, Gazos Creek, Borges
Ranch, Suburban yards
Habitat: Wooded areas, suburban yards.
Where to look: under logs and rocks, and
trees.
No Larvae.
Food: invertebrates.
Color variation: spotting variable from light
to heavy.
Additional Comments: Has prehensile tail.
Barks.
Broods eggs.
Anurans
Pelobatidae
Spea hammondii
Corral Hollow
Bufonidae
400 + species.
Visible paratoid glands.
Round pupils.
Short-legged.
Warty.
Foot tubercles.
California Toad
Bufo (Anaxyrus) boreas halophilus
California Toad
Bufo (Anaxyrus) boreas halophilus
Mt. Diablo, Borges Ranch, Briones, Limeridge Ponds,
Thrives in disturbed habitat
Habitat: Disturbed areas with ponds &
vernal pools.
Where to look: under logs; in water, road
crossing during rainy nights.
Larvae transform rapidly.
Food: invertebrates.
Color variation: pale to dark.
Additional Comments: Males have release
calls.
Hylidae
800 + species.
Toe pads set off by extra segment.
Typically large headed with rounded
snouts.
Name means wood dweller.
Pacific Treefrog
Pseudacris regilla (sierra)
Pacific Treefrog
Pseudacris regilla (sierra)
Mt. Diablo, Leona Canyon,
Briones, Redwood Regional Park,
Sunol, Corral Hollow
Ranidae
True frogs.
Smooth skin. Glandular dorsolateral folds from
posterior eye to lower back.
Forelimbs and thumb bases of males enlarge
during breeding season; webbing also increases
and dark nuptial pads develop on the base of
thumbs.
Vocal sacs, single, paired or inconspicuous.
Name means frog.
Bullfrog
Rana (Lithobates) catesbeiana
Bullfrog
Rana (Lithobates) catesbeiana
Heather Farms, drought may
have reduced or eliminated
many populations
Habitat: Requires year round water
Larvae transform slowly: 2 years.
Food: invertebrates.
Color variation: pale and dark, even blue
forms.
Additional Comments: Introduced for food.
Opportunistic eater of amphibians and
aquatic reptiles as well as fish and
invertebrates.
Pipidae
Clawed Frogs.
Introduced to Bay Area.
Tongueless frogs.
South American and African species.
Ears designed for hearing underwater.
No vocal cords; vocalize with laryngeal rods.
Flattened bodies and feet totally webbed.
Entirely aquatic.
Fossil record dates back to early Cretaceous.
Name means chirp
Range
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Reproductive strategies
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