Playas, amphibians and wildlife

There are many people who think the Great Sandy Desert of Oregon has nothing other than pronghorn and jackrabbits; there's a lot more.

Take, for example, the little Pacific tree frogs that are calling in the ponds just about everywhere around Sisters these nights; they're also out on the Great Sandy Desert. I've found them on hot summer days hiding in deep cool muddy holes cows make when they walk around desert playas looking for water.

I say, "looking for water," as I can't see how a cow can drink that stuff - it's too thick to drink and too thin to plow - but it's what Great Basin spadefoot toads need, so why not cows.

Last week, I chanced to come upon a roadside playa out near Hampton, and had to stop to see what was in it. It was impossible to see a half-inch below the surface because of the turbidity of the water, but every once in a while, a spadefoot tadpole popped up through the tan-colored "water," and if you looked closely, you could also see tiny shrimp and other invertebrates skittering about.

There isn't another animal on the desert that will catch your attention like the spadefoots when they're singing. If you have a favorite playa, camp next to it for a night, especially during a good old summer thunderstorm. You can get free toad sounds and lightning pictures at the same time. On the other hand, if you want to spend 99 cents to hear a spadefoot calling, go to: http://www.amazon.com/Animal-Call-Great-Basin-Spadefoot/dp/B003D3UASS.

Of the 19 species of salamanders we have in Oregon, only the long-toed is tough enough to live on the desert. In spring, they can be found mating and laying eggs beneath the icy ponds. When the gilled larvae have metamorphosed into adults with lungs and are no longer tied to an aquatic lifestyle, they begin to wander far from their aquatic home. If you turn over a rock or piece of old juniper on the desert and find a long-toed salamander under it, don't be surprised. (But please put the rock or limb back the way you found it!)

Although our tiny Pacific tree frog is completely dependent on freshwater ponds in which to lay eggs that hatch into tadpoles, as adults they are wonderful wanderers. It is their ability to withstand dry air that provides them the opportunity to explore for new habitat and therefore expand their range. Expanding the range provides greater opportunities for survival of the species - and that, Oh Best Beloved, is what life is all about.

Burrowing owls, another creature of the Great Sandy Desert, will gobble up a tree frog just as quickly as they do a kangaroo rat, pocket mouse or sagebrush lizard.

There is no telling what you can find if you take the time to visit a playa. A warning: You will have to control your exuberance when you hear a sage thrasher suddenly break out in it's trilling song at 2 a.m., telling those who will listen what it saw in the sunlight the day before.

No matter where you go on Oregon's Great Sandy Desert, be prepared for the best old Mother Nature has to offer; you'll find it there!