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WITH
PERMEABLE
SKIN, THE
NORTHERN
RED-LEGGED
FROG NEVER
DRINKS
WATER —
IT SIMPLY
ABSORBS IT.
Rana aurora
Northern red-legged frog
By LYNETTE RAE MCADAMS
A genuine local to the
coast, the Northern red-
legged frog inhabits the
western regions of Northern
California, Oregon, Washing-
ton and British Columbia,
S ATURDAY
D ECEMBER 10 TH
N OON TO 4 PM
L IBERTY T HEATRE
Festive shopping that benefi ts local nonprofi ts
thriving in the forests and
wetlands that relish copious
amounts of rain.
A medium-sized frog, it
has a slender body, smooth
brown to reddish-brown
skin, black mottling, a dark
eye mask, and a single light
stripe that runs along the
jawline. The undersides of
its long legs and also its
belly are typically orange or
tawny red in color, lending
meaning to its scientific
name, which translates
literally as “dawn-colored
frog.”
Like all frogs, Rana
aurora is an amphibian. Not
quite a fish, but not really a
reptile either, amphibians
PHOTO BY LYNETTE RAE MCADAMS
A female Northern red-legged frog in the woods near Cape Disappointment, Washington.
lead a double life, starting
out in ponds and marsh-
es in their larval stage as
tadpoles, when they use
gills to breathe underwater,
then quickly growing legs
and lungs to eventually
emerge from the birthing
pool completely trans-
formed — walking (or in
this case, jumping) onto dry
land. With long, powerful
legs, this is the frog you’re
most likely to encounter
Santa Lucia
Festival of Lights
Friday, November 25 th
Astoria High School
1001 W. Marine Drive
when hiking in the Colum-
bia-Pacific region; camou-
flaged against the forest
floor, it can be hard to spot
at first, but its tendency to
leap out from underfoot at
the very last second gives
away its identity every time.
With permeable skin,
the Northern red-legged
frog never drinks water — it
simply absorbs it — making
it an excellent biological
indicator of an ecosystem’s
overall health; if the water
becomes toxic, this sensi-
tive frog can’t survive. In ad-
dition to its duty in keeping
the frog hydrated, this thin,
specialized skin also plays
a role in nutrition: shed-
ding itself quite frequently
— even up to once per
week — the old, dead skin
is consumed by the frog as
soon as it manages to pull
it off.
In addition to its own
dermis, some of R. aurora’s
other favorite feasts include
insects, snails and slugs,
worms, tadpoles and small
fish. With a long, sticky
tongue that attaches to the
front of the mouth instead
of the back, it catches its
prey and then, using a
single row of upper teeth
to hold the meal steady,
blinks once, pushing its
eyeballs through the roof of
the mouth, creating a bulge
that helps shove the food
down the frog’s throat — a
fitting reminder that in a
Pacific Northwest forest, ev-
ery day is like Thanksgiving.
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Between Raymond & South Bend on
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Find us on
Holiday Music 6:30 pm
Santa Lucia Festival of Lights Program 7 pm
Program
• Santa Lucia Bride &
Attendants
• Star Boys
• Introduction of the
2017 Scandinavian
Court
• Lighting of the
Christmas tree
www.AstoriaScanFest.com
Featured Entertainment
• North Coast Chorale
• Astor Street Opry Company ChrisLynn
Taylor & the Cast of Scrooged In Astoria
• Nordic & Viking Dancers
• Refreshments: United Finnish Kaleva
Brothers & Sisters, Astoria Lodge #2
• Public Dancing: Scandinavian Music by
Jorgen & Steve Phillips
Admission $1 per individual or $5 per family
Proceeds will go to the Festival Scholarship Fund
Sponsored by the Scandinavian Midsummer Heritage Association
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