As we walked on a raised boardwalk through the wetlands of Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge in Olympia, Washington, I kept hearing bullfrogs and wanted to see one. A large one lived in the ditch in front of our house when I was growing up in the foothills of California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains. I had slept outside in the summer and gone to sleep listening to the his deep ‘chug-a-rum, chug-a-rum, chug-a-rum.’ At around three inches, the guy above was far too small. “It’s a red legged frog,” a volunteer told us.
We saw several red legged frogs and possibly an Oregon spotted frog, which is rare in the area and is listed as endangered. Bull frogs, it turns out, are an invasive species at the refuge and a threat to the locals. “Oh, they’re bullies!” the ever clever Peggy proclaimed as I groaned.
When I was reading up on the frogs, I saw a job description for a person who would work ‘nights in a canoe or kayak capturing non-native bullfrogs in areas where federally listed Oregon spotted frogs are found.’ Need work? I couldn’t help but wonder if the captured frogs donated their legs to the local cuisine. My brother Marshall and I hunted bull frogs as kids for the family larder. Marshall also sold the legs to local restaurants. He got 25 cents for a pair. A fortune. We left the big guy out front alone, however. I thought of him as something of a pet. (Plus our parents told us that the ditch water was of ‘questionable character.’ We weren’t supposed to drink it, play in it, or catch frogs in it!)
This was the frog the volunteer described as a red-legged frog. The legs didn’t seem red to me, but hey, I’m color-blinded to red. For real. Do they look red to you?I watched this guy/gal make its way through the mud. Maybe it was heading to one of the communal gatherings of Oregon spotted frogs where dozens/hundreds get together and make tadpoles by the light of the moon.The wildlife refuge is located where the freshwater of the Nisqually River flows into Washington’s Puget Sound. The fresh water bog includes a number of habitats that support an incredible diversity of wildlife. Including this great blue heron that also has a taste for frog legs. And the whole frog! “Where’s the frog?” it squawked at us. “Show me froggy!”Was this shelf mushroom saying “Leave the little frogs alone.” We also spotted a turtle in the same area with the frogs. I was reminded of the saying when I was working as a young grassroots organizer in the 70s: “Behold the turtle who only makes progress when it sticks its neck out.” I stuck my neck out a lot.
I was curious about how the wildlife refuge got its name. Who was Billy Frank Jr? It turns out he was a Native American leader of the Nisqually tribe who fought for treaty rights and was an environmental advocate. During the 60s and 70s he had organized a number of fish-ins to assure that the tribe had fishing rights along the Nisqually River, the Nisqually’s home base. He was arrested numerous times during the Fish Wars. He then became a leader in efforts to protect and manage the region’s natural resources. In November of 2015, he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.
In addition to the fun walk through the wetlands, the wildlife refuge features the Nisqually Estuary Boardwalk Trail that provides an excellent introduction to life on an estuary.I took a photo of Peggy and our niece, Christina, out on the Boardwalk and rendered it in black and white.I’ll conclude today’s post with a final photo of the red legged (or Oregon spotted) frog. This also concludes our trip up the Pacific Coast which was filled with beauty and great adventures. Our journey isn’t over, however. We still have two National Parks to visit: The North Cascades and Glacier. My next post will be a quick review of the five we have already visited during 2024. I’m throwing in Everglades as a bonus since we were there in February before we started west.
22 thoughts on “The Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge— and Frogs… It’s a Wrap on the Pacific Coast Series ”
Right you are, Curt. Color blind or not, you and I agree, I don’t see red legs either. They appear brown to me (and in school, I passed my color blind test.)
I also thought the legs could be red underneath. Curt, I really enjoyed this piece on the refuge and have added it to my want to visit list! I follow your blog inconsistently but always enjoy it and learn something new. Nice b/w picture of Peggy and friend. We should try and coordinate somewhere while we’re both on the road. Happy travels!!
I love frogs, and these photos are terrific. I don’t see the legs as red, either. I suppose they could be described as ‘reddish,’ but I suspect the name’s a result of just having to come up with a way to distinguish them from other frogs in conversation.
Around here, gigging’s the preferred method. And of course there’s a song!
I’ve really enjoyed this series. Now, I want to get out and about and find me a bullfrog!
OK. We’re in for five days of rain. It was necessary to lay in some supplies, including ice cream. I decided to give Tillamook one more chance after reading your post. I brought home cookies and cream and vanilla bean. Yum! It is better than Bluebell. Apparently my taster was ‘off’ the first time around!
Peggy and I are both laughing, Linda. Not that Bluebell was bad. It was good. But…
Pretty hilarious song, there, Linda. Fun choice as always. How you come up with so many is beyond me. Okefonokee Joe.
Way back in Diamond, Marshall and I would gather up our three pronged gigs and a bright flashlight and off we would go. Our favorite pond was Tony Pavy’s. It was the most dangerous. We hear a door slam, see a searchlight go on and then hear the shotgun blast up in the air. At least we hoped Tony was shooting into the air, and away we would run!
Glad you have been in this part of the world! I love the walk in the valley. Every season is so amazing there. Happy trails to you and Peggy. Where to now?
We’ve been so busy, it’s constant catch up on comments, Wendy. You’ve seen our visit to North Cascades NP. Next up is Glacier. Peggy and I are actually in Indiana now, on our way to her aunts 100th birthday in Ohio. Then It will be back to Virginia for a couple of months.
Peggy used to sing Jeremiah was a Bullfrog to our grandkids, Dave. Note Crystal’s comment on the frogs. She jumped into research because one of your taxis in Portland is named the ‘red frog taxi.’
Glad you passed. I first discovered my color blindness when I was in elementary school, way back in the 50s. I couldn’t see the numbers the other kids could!
I just spent a hilariously long amount of time researching frogs in Nisqually. The reason originally was because there is a red-legged frog TAXI, yes a frog taxi, here in Portland, and I wondered if it was the same frog. Yes, the Northern Red-legged Frog is the one in the frog taxi here. (The mating migration takes them across highway 30 but hundreds of volunteers go out at night and pick them up and carry them across the road. It’s amazing.) The Oregon spotted frog can also get very red, so then I was determined to identify the frog in your photo. I confess, I am not sure, but I finally settled on the Northern Red-Legged Frog, as you were told. This frog often has red underneath, and red inside the thighs – like, between the thighs and the calf, which I can aaallllmost see in your photo. The reason it took so long is because none of the photos I have found on the interwebs have the bright green head like the frog in your photo. Nor do any of them have the nicely uniform tiny black spots in rows as yours does. Anyway, all that work for nuthin’ ha ha! My bet is that if you had picked up the frog and stretched its legs out, you would have seen the red.
Laughing, Crystal. Trying to pick up that frog would have involved me getting very wet or muddy and probably ending up empty handed! Love your comments, however. The hundred of volunteers doing a rescue effort sound wonderful, however. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I seem to remember volunteers doing the same thing for toads in Davis, Ca. I think they finally built a tunnel under the road to provide and alternative for the toads.
Yes!! That is the ultimate goal here with the frog taxi. They are trying to collect enough money to build a tunnel under the highway.
That’s what they did in Davis as well although, as I recall, city government picked up most of the cost. 🙂
I’d love to see a bull frog! I’ve heard them here in one of the parks in Vancouver, but never seen one, but i have eaten frog legs – many many years ago. Love the frog photos.
Every pond had them where I grew up, Alison. 🙂 Big guys! Frog legs have a distinctive taste. I can call it up in my mind easily even though its been several years since I ate any.
We always liked them. My mother always insisted on waiting a day before cooking them, however. “They jump around in the pan,” she’d say. “Too creepy.” 😄
Wandering through Time and Place 
Right you are, Curt. Color blind or not, you and I agree, I don’t see red legs either. They appear brown to me (and in school, I passed my color blind test.)
Seems that you, I and a few others agree, G. So we will go with it.
Maybe the legs are red under the brown mud, but I doubt it.
And it wouldn’t roll over on its back to show me!
I also thought the legs could be red underneath. Curt, I really enjoyed this piece on the refuge and have added it to my want to visit list! I follow your blog inconsistently but always enjoy it and learn something new. Nice b/w picture of Peggy and friend. We should try and coordinate somewhere while we’re both on the road. Happy travels!!
Thanks Bonnie. Appreciated. Jumped over to try and find you blog, but all WP showed me was a blank page???
I love frogs, and these photos are terrific. I don’t see the legs as red, either. I suppose they could be described as ‘reddish,’ but I suspect the name’s a result of just having to come up with a way to distinguish them from other frogs in conversation.
Around here, gigging’s the preferred method. And of course there’s a song!
I’ve really enjoyed this series. Now, I want to get out and about and find me a bullfrog!
OK. We’re in for five days of rain. It was necessary to lay in some supplies, including ice cream. I decided to give Tillamook one more chance after reading your post. I brought home cookies and cream and vanilla bean. Yum! It is better than Bluebell. Apparently my taster was ‘off’ the first time around!
Peggy and I are both laughing, Linda. Not that Bluebell was bad. It was good. But…
Pretty hilarious song, there, Linda. Fun choice as always. How you come up with so many is beyond me. Okefonokee Joe.
Way back in Diamond, Marshall and I would gather up our three pronged gigs and a bright flashlight and off we would go. Our favorite pond was Tony Pavy’s. It was the most dangerous. We hear a door slam, see a searchlight go on and then hear the shotgun blast up in the air. At least we hoped Tony was shooting into the air, and away we would run!
Glad you have been in this part of the world! I love the walk in the valley. Every season is so amazing there. Happy trails to you and Peggy. Where to now?
We’ve been so busy, it’s constant catch up on comments, Wendy. You’ve seen our visit to North Cascades NP. Next up is Glacier. Peggy and I are actually in Indiana now, on our way to her aunts 100th birthday in Ohio. Then It will be back to Virginia for a couple of months.
Was your pet frog named Jerimiah by chance?
Maybe the folks who named the Red Legged Frog found him in red mud. This one seems more stained brown. (And I recently passed a color blindness test.)
Peggy used to sing Jeremiah was a Bullfrog to our grandkids, Dave. Note Crystal’s comment on the frogs. She jumped into research because one of your taxis in Portland is named the ‘red frog taxi.’
Glad you passed. I first discovered my color blindness when I was in elementary school, way back in the 50s. I couldn’t see the numbers the other kids could!
I just spent a hilariously long amount of time researching frogs in Nisqually. The reason originally was because there is a red-legged frog TAXI, yes a frog taxi, here in Portland, and I wondered if it was the same frog. Yes, the Northern Red-legged Frog is the one in the frog taxi here. (The mating migration takes them across highway 30 but hundreds of volunteers go out at night and pick them up and carry them across the road. It’s amazing.) The Oregon spotted frog can also get very red, so then I was determined to identify the frog in your photo. I confess, I am not sure, but I finally settled on the Northern Red-Legged Frog, as you were told. This frog often has red underneath, and red inside the thighs – like, between the thighs and the calf, which I can aaallllmost see in your photo. The reason it took so long is because none of the photos I have found on the interwebs have the bright green head like the frog in your photo. Nor do any of them have the nicely uniform tiny black spots in rows as yours does. Anyway, all that work for nuthin’ ha ha! My bet is that if you had picked up the frog and stretched its legs out, you would have seen the red.
Laughing, Crystal. Trying to pick up that frog would have involved me getting very wet or muddy and probably ending up empty handed! Love your comments, however. The hundred of volunteers doing a rescue effort sound wonderful, however. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I seem to remember volunteers doing the same thing for toads in Davis, Ca. I think they finally built a tunnel under the road to provide and alternative for the toads.
Yes!! That is the ultimate goal here with the frog taxi. They are trying to collect enough money to build a tunnel under the highway.
That’s what they did in Davis as well although, as I recall, city government picked up most of the cost. 🙂
I’d love to see a bull frog! I’ve heard them here in one of the parks in Vancouver, but never seen one, but i have eaten frog legs – many many years ago. Love the frog photos.
Alison
Every pond had them where I grew up, Alison. 🙂 Big guys! Frog legs have a distinctive taste. I can call it up in my mind easily even though its been several years since I ate any.
My cousins used to catch frogs and my aunt would coat the legs in flour and fry them. Very rubbery texture, not my cup of tea but they loved it.
We always liked them. My mother always insisted on waiting a day before cooking them, however. “They jump around in the pan,” she’d say. “Too creepy.” 😄