A Guide to the Amphibians
and Reptiles of California
Click on a picture for a larger view
Eggs and Tadpoles of
Sierran Treefrog - Pseudacris sierra
(Jameson, Mackey, and Richmond, 1966)(= Pacific Chorus Frog, = Pacific Treefrog. See Alternate Names)
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| Eggs, Butte County | Eggs, Contra Costa County | |
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| Eggs, Contra Costa County | Eggs, Contra Costa County | Eggs, Contra Costa County |
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| Eggs, San Mateo County | Mature eggs, ready to hatch, Alpine County |
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| Eggs, Fresno County. | Recently-laid eggs, Contra Costa County | Eggs, Contra Costa County © Grayson B. Sandy |
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| Recently-deposited embryos found attached to spike rush just below the water surface in a large ephemeral constructed livestock watering basin, Monterey County © Pat Trenham | These are unlaid eggs which have spilled out of the open abdomen of a dead Sierran Treefrog that was found at the edge of a pond in Alameda County. The cause of death was unknown. If you don't want to see a gory picture of the dead frog, don't click on the thumbnail to look at the large image. |
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| On the bottom left you can see an egg sac from a Sierran Treefrog. The large mass of eggs above it is from a California Red-legged Frog. |
Adult Sierran Treefrog and eggs in a large Native American bedrock mortar hole in Contra Costa County. © Mark Gary |
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| Eggs with those of Sympatric Amphibians | ||
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| There are three types of frog eggs in this Contra Costa County pond in mid March: the large mass on top is from a California Red-legged Frog, the long strings of eggs are from the California Toad, and the small balls of eggs are from the Sierran Treefrog. © Mark Gary |
There are four types of amphibian eggs in this Alameda County pond in late Fegruary: On the top left near the surface is a Sierran Treefrog egg mass. To the right and slightly below that is a California Newt egg mass. Below these small egg masses are several recently-hatched California Toad egg strings (no longer eggs, really.) And the large egg mass in the bottom right corner of the picture is from a California Red-legged Frog. © Mark Gary |
Sierran Treefrog egg sac on bottom. California Tiger Salamander egg on top right, in a pond in Contra Costa County. © Mark Gary |
| Tadpoles | ||
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| Tadpole, Contra Costa County | Tadpole, Contra Costa County | Recently hatched tadpoles at shallow edge of small pond, Contra Costa County |
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| Tadpole in water, Contra Costa County | ||
| Comparisons With Larvae and Tadpoles of Sympatric Species | ||
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| California Red-legged Frog tadpole (Top) Treefrog tadpole (Pseudacris) (Bottom) |
California Red-legged Frog tadpole (Right) Treefrog tadpole (Pseudacris) (Left) |
Foothill Yellow-legged Frog tadpole (Top) Treefrog Tadpole (Pseudacris) (Bottom) |
| The eyes of Treefrog tadpoles (Pseudacris) extend to the margins of the head when seen from above, while the eyes of tapoles of the sympatric California Red-legged Frog are inset from the margins of the head, as you can see in the above photos from Alameda County. © Joseph E. DiDonato. |
Seen from above, the eyes of the Foothill Yellow-legged Frog are located away from the side of the head and the eyes of a treefrog tadpole, Pseudacris regilla, are located at the edge of the head. | |
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| Comparison of young sympatric aquatic amphibian larvae: Treefrog Tadpole (Pseudacris) (Bottom) Long-toed Salamander larvae (Ambystoma macrodactylum) (Top) |
Cascade Frog tadpole - (Left) Eyes are on top of the head. Treefrog tadpole (Pseudacris) (Right) Eyes are on the sides of the head. |
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| Comparison of Treefrog Tadpole (Pseudacris regilla group) (Top) with Toad Tadpole (Anaxyrus boreas) (Bottom) (Click on picture for a better view) |
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| Short Video | ||
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| Sierran Treefrog tadpoles feed in a pond and a puddle in a creekbed on a sunny spring afternoon in Contra Costa County. | ||
Go to the Pacific Treefrog Tadpoles page to see more pictures of what the tadpoles of this frog look like. Go to the Sierran Treefrog main page to see pictures of breeding habitat. |
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