Clutch sizes and nests of tailed frogs from the Olympic Peninsula, Washington

In the summers 1995-1998, we sampled 168 streams (1,714 in of randomly selected 1-m
bands) to determine distribution and abundance of stream amphibians in Olympic
National Park, Washington. We found six nests (two in one stream) of the tailed frog,
compared to only two nests with clutch sizes reported earlier for coastal regions. This
represents only one nest per 286 in searched and one nest per 34 streams sampled. Tailed
frogs occurred only in 94 (60%) of the streams and, for these waters, we found one nest
per 171 in searched or one nest per 20 streams sampled. The numbers of eggs for four
masses ((x) over bar = 48.3, range 40-55) were low but one single strand in a fifth nest
had 96 eggs. One nest with 185 eggs likely represented communal egg deposition.
Current evidence indicates a geographic trend with yearly clutches of relatively few eggs
in coastal tailed frogs compared to biennial nesting with larger clutches for inland
populations in the Rocky Mountains.