Point Reyes Light - September 21, 2000
Most of West Marin eyed for rare-frog habitat
Biologists from the US Fish and Wildlife Service this month proposed to designate more than 5 million acres of California - including virtually all of West Marin - as critical habitat for the federally-protected California red-legged frog.
The proposal - which must still complete public review and be approved by the Fish and Wildlife Service director - establishes wetlands in 31 counties as critical areas to the future survival of the frog, including the coastal counties south from the Point Reyes National Seashore and counties in the Central Valley south to the Mexico border.
Locally, habitat for the 1.5- to 5-inch frog, the largest native frog species in the Western United States, includes an area from the Golden Gate headlands to the north of Tomales Bay and inland into the county watersheds, including upland of the Bolinas Lagoon. The typically olive, brown, or gray amphibians with rust-colored bellies and hind-legs are best known as the inspiration for Mark Twain's short story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County."
209,000 acres in Marin The West Marin designation includes approximately 209,000 acres, 48 percent of which is privately-owned and the remaining 52 percent managed by the National Park Service, the state Department of Parks and Recreation, and Marin Municipal Water District.
However, since the habitat designation was proposed on Sept. 8, several area residents and ranchers have worried that the proposal to designate virtually all of West Marin as red-legged frog habitat could set the stage for further restrictions on agriculture and other land uses.
Questions have also arisen regarding the impact on the freshwater frog of plans by the Park Service to restore the 550-acre Giacomini Ranch at the southern end of Tomales Bay to inter-tidal saltwater wetlands.
Gary Fellers, a US Geological Survey biologist stationed at the National Seashore, said the park's 70,000 acres provide abundant habitat in one of the state's last true refuges for the frog. "We have one of the largest populations of red-legged frogs in the state," he said. "They aren't found in great numbers in any one area, but are found in most freshwater marshes throughout the Seashore."
Ranchers' stock ponds Fellers explained that Park Service management of the frog populations has been effective. Because the frogs are largely successful on ranches in the park - primarily because they like the habitat provided by stockponds - he said he sees no need to further restrict ranching activities to protect the species locally.
"Because it is federally-listed, we have clear obligations on how the species is managed," he said. "But in our case we were already treating the frog as endangered...What we're doing is working."
As for the proposed Waldo Giacomini Wetlands, in which most of the dairy ranch will be converted to saltwater marsh by removing dikes, Fellers said the conversion could reduce a small amount of adult frog riparian habitat along Papermill Creek, but not the species' breeding areas, which are primarily stillwater ponds. Fellers noted that the project will need to be studied by hydrologists and biologists before any action is taken.
Frogs need fresh water "The frogs can't tolerate salt water to any [significant] extent, although we do find them in ponds one- to two-hundred yards from the ocean," Fellers said. "The Giacomini property reverting back to a tideline situation could reduce some of the sites where they could be found, but will essentially not endanger the red-legged frog in any way."
The proposed designation comes in response to a 1999 federal court order issued to the US Fish and Wildlife Service after that agency declined to designate the frog's habitat when it was first listed as a threatened species in 1996.
Environmentalists sued the Wildlife Service to force the action after the agency decided that such designation would not help the species, but would merely help people locate the few remaining frog populations for harvesting and vandalism.
After the announcement, Wildlife Service spokeswoman Patricia Foulk said the initiative will help federal biologists protect the frog's habitat, which throughout the state is mainly freshwater ponds and riparian environments with vegetation such as cattails and willows.
Another layer of protection "This adds one more layer of protection for the species beyond what it gets from the Endangered Species Act," Foulk said. "It has been illegal to harm or take the frogs since they were listed in 1996, but this will help us administer our recovery plan released earlier this year."
Using the designation, federal biologists upon approval intend to implement a multi-faceted recovery plan, which includes monitoring and reestablishing frog populations and restoring habitat that has not been harmed by development, Foulk explained. The broad habitat designations are not intended to include areas already developed, she noted. "The areas are not defined to minute detail," she said. "Developed areas like shopping centers and housing developments will not be considered frog habitat."
If approved, the designation will affect only lands that are federally owned or managed, and does not in any way set aside lands as preserves or refuges. "Critical habitat designation requires that a development project will not adversely affect the environment for the frog," Foulk said. "Any projects slated for development in these areas will be looked at more closely than before."
60 percent privately owned Of the designated areas statewide, some 60 percent of the land is in private ownership, while the remaining 40 percent is in public ownership and managed by either state, federal, or local government agencies. Private landowners would not be affected by the designation, but public agencies will be required to consult with the Wildlife Service about activities in red-legged frog habitats.
Like other amphibians, the red-logged frog is often used as an indicator of an area's overall environmental health. The frog, however, has lost 70 percent of its range in California, mostly because of habitat destruction and the introduction of non-native predators such as bullfrogs.
Foulk said that efforts to reclaim publicly-managed wetlands throughout the state stand to greatly benefit the species. "In some areas of the state some gains are being made in establishing new habitat for the species," she said. "For the red-legged frog, a restored wetland is better than no wetland."
The Wildlife Service is conducting a series of public hearings on the proposed habitat designation through the end of this month, and public comment will be accepted through Oct. 11. Those wanting additional information can contact the agency at (916) 414-6600 or its website, www.r1.fws.gov.