Just like in John Muir’s day, frogs and toads can still be found jumping about the rivers and alpine lakes of the Sierra Nevada. However, some of the amphibians in Yosemite National Park are currently threatened, endangered, or otherwise listed as species of special concern, including the California red-legged frog, the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog, and the Yosemite toad.
The park’s scientific conservation efforts these days are mostly directed toward saving the yellow-legged frog, which naturally evolved in the Sierra Nevada’s lakes. Originally, Yosemite’s high-elevation lakes contained no fish, which allowed frogs to become abundant. But after game species of fish such as trout were introduced, yellow-bellied frog populations declined as tadpoles were predated upon by non-native fish. Scientists today are trying to revive yellow-bellied frogs by reintroducing them to fishless lakes in the Sierra Nevada’s high country.
Of course, not all fish in Yosemite are non-native species that were introduced in the late 19th century for the purpose of sport fishing. A few native species of fish, such as rainbow trout, occur naturally at lower elevations of the park’s Tuolumne and Merced Rivers, including in the Yosemite Valley. Visit our Yosemite fishing article for helpful information about recreational fishing in Yosemite park, including the best spots, what kind of bait and hooks to use, and how to get a California fishing license.
