Tag Archives: camouflage

•

Jerry Rudy discovered a nest of Killdeer eggs in a meadow behind his home in Timber Cove. They are truly hidden in plain sight.

You can see how the Killdeer mother chose a spot that closely resembled her eggs. Here's a photo of an adult Killdeer next to its eggs, which was taken by Rich Perry.

Killdeer often lay their eggs this time of year in gravel riverbeds, as Rich's photo shows. That's one of the very good reasons to never drive in a river like the Gualala River.

Thanks to Jerry and Rich for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

•

Nan Brichetto came across this little green frog on the gravel banks of the Gualala River. It's a Chorus Frog or Sierran Tree Frog. It used to be called  a Pacific Tree Frog but its name was changed recently.

These frogs have a big call which sounds like "ribbit, ribbit." They are able to change their color to match their surroundings. Below is a Tree Frog changing from green to rusty red. This was photographed by Clay Yale.

It must be nice to be able to camouflage oneself! Thanks to Nan and Clay for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

•

This past week Cathleen Crosby and her granddaughter, Tali, came across a small Pacific Tree Frog on The Sea Ranch. The way it's looking at Cathleen's camera makes me think this frog has an attitude! This would be a fun photo to have a caption contest.

This is the only frog who's call is "ribbitt, ribbitt." It is usually green but can change color to help camouflage itself. These frogs are found on the West Coast all the way up to British Columbia. To see another photo Cathleen took of a Pacific Tree Frog on a spa, here's the link: http://www.mendonomasightings.com/2011/10/21/a-tiny-frog-with-a-big-voice-meet-the-pacific-tree-frog/