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Sierran treefrog

Pseudacris sierra · Frogs and toads · Amphibians

Sierran treefrog (Pseudacris sierra): Toes are long with large disks and very little webbing. Nearly all have a black stripe from the snout through the nostril, eye and eardrum to just above the front leg. This profile does not establish whether taking it is legal anywhere.

Check rules for a place and date

Certified rules currently represented in Hunt: coverage in development. This is coverage, not a legal answer.

Scientific name
Pseudacris sierra
Family
Hylidae
In North America
Native
Range
Central California, Nevada, eastern Oregon, Idaho and western Montana, possibly extreme northwestern Utah; genetic work (Jadin et al. 2021) found it, not the Pacific treefrog, in Idaho and Montana.
Biology

How to identify it

Toes are long with large disks and very little webbing. [1][2]

Nearly all have a black stripe from the snout through the nostril, eye and eardrum to just above the front leg. [1][2]

Back commonly tan mottled with dark brown spots; can be solid green or other colours. [1][2]

Often heard but not seen; tadpoles have eyes outside the outline of the body from above. [1][2]

Compared with the pacific treefrog: Distinguishable only by genetics (Montana Field Guide). [1][2]

Species it is confused with

Check these before deciding what you are looking at. If you are not certain what it is, do not shoot.

Field notes

  • Identification Confirm a sierran treefrog before you act. Compared with the pacific treefrog: Distinguishable only by genetics (Montana Field Guide).[1][2]
Field knowledge

Where it lives

Grassland, chaparral, woodland, forest and farmland; on land except when breeding. [1][2]

Eggs are laid in shallow marshes, lakes, ponds, ditches, reservoirs and slow streams. [1][2]

Field knowledge

How it behaves

Females can lay 500-750 eggs in total; clutches of a few cm hold 18-119 eggs (mean 68 in northwest Montana). [1][2]

Breeds in shallow water of marshes, lakes, ponds and ditches; spends most of its time on the ground and may bask on woody plants far from water or climb into trees. [1][2]

Can be quite abundant locally. [1][2]

Regulatory handoff

Limited legal take

Legal take of this species exists only under narrow conditions — a quota, a draw, a permit, a small area, or animals released or held on private land — set by the authorities below. Nowhere else is a legal opportunity implied, and Hunt shows one only where a certified rule establishes it.

Where legal take is listed

Being listed is not an open season. Seasons, zones, licences, methods and limits decide whether this animal may be taken on a given day and place — check Hunt or the authority before you go. Listings read 2026-09-30.

Geospatial intelligence

Where it is found

Central California, Nevada, eastern Oregon, Idaho and western Montana, possibly extreme northwestern Utah; genetic work (Jadin et al. 2021) found it, not the Pacific treefrog, in Idaho and Montana.

Biology

Sources

Every claim above is attributed to one of these published sources.

  1. NatureServe · reviewed 2026-09-30

    NatureServe

  2. Montana Natural Heritage Program / Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks · reviewed 2026-09-30

    Montana Natural Heritage Program / Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks