skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, November 21, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Federal inquiry traces payments from Gaetz to women; a new Florida-Puerto Rico partnership poised to transform higher-ed landscape; MT joins Tribes to target Canadian mining pollution; Heart health plummets in rural SD and nationwide; CO working families would pay more under Trump tax proposals.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transgender rights in Congress, a historic win for Utah's youngest elected official, scrutiny of Democratic Party leadership, and the economic impact of Trump's tax proposals highlight America's shifting political and social landscape.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The CDC has a new plan to improve the health of rural Americans, updated data could better prepare folks for flash floods like those that devastated Appalachia, and Native American Tribes could play a key role in the nation's energy future.

Mark Twain's Jumping Frog Named State Amphibian

play audio
Play

Tuesday, July 8, 2014   

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Mark Twain made it famous, and now the California red-legged frog is about to become the state's official amphibian.

Governor Jerry Brown has signed legislation that recognizes the star of Twain's 1865 short story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County." Dr. Kerry Kriger with the Berkeley-based nonprofit Save the Frogs says this will ensure California students learn more about the species' important place in the ecology, culture and history of California.

"Amphibians have traditionally been neglected in education, so this will bring the plight of the red-legged frogs directly to tens of thousands of California students," says Kriger.

The new law goes into effect at the beginning of 2015, and will elevate the frog as a state symbol alongside the grizzly bear, desert tortoise and golden poppy. The red-legged frog is the largest native frog in the western United States and is found almost exclusively in California.

Once abundant during the Gold Rush, the species now faces dozens of natural and manmade threats, including the introduction of invasive species and habitat loss. The red-legged frog is considered a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act, but Kriger says the new state designation will go even further in helping the species recover.

"It'll make it more difficult for people to harm the California red-legged frog because Californians will be more prone to protect the species and care about the species since it is our official state amphibian," says Kriger.

The legislation came together as an after-school project for students at Sea View Elementary in Salton City, a small town on the western shore of the Salton Sea in Imperial County. The students rallied behind the effort and contacted Assemblyman Manuel Perez, asking him to author the bill.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
Since its founding, the CCA program has generated more than $2 billion for transportation and infrastructure upgrades, clean air and water initiatives, utility bill rebates, community solar, indoor air quality improvements and more. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

On Election Day, a broad coalition of conservationists, labor, and others helped defeat a ballot initiative to repeal Washington State's Climate …


Social Issues

play sound

In the wake of Donald Trump's re-election, teachers nationwide are bracing for more censorship battles. Currently, more than 40 laws in 22 states …

Social Issues

play sound

A new annual report shows New York City has more than 146,000 homeless students. The Advocates for Children of New York report finds this is an …


More than 3,000 Maine apprentices were actively working on industry-recognized skill certification in 2022, according to the Maine Department of Labor. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

State officials in Maine said they are working to expand the number of registered apprenticeship programs to help counter a persistent worker shortage…

Social Issues

play sound

School boards are nonpartisan, but a recent trend in Wyoming shows far-right candidates are bringing national politics to local elections. Public …

In 2020, roughly 9.9% of all U-S adults over age 20 were, or 28.6 million people, were affected by cardiovascular disease, according to a review article from the American Heart Association. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

It is National Rural Health Day and experts are flagging research showing increasing health disparities between urban and rural places, including in …

Social Issues

play sound

President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress have promised to pass a new tax bill, and a new report breaks down the expected winners and …

Social Issues

play sound

Recent surveys show a majority of North Dakotans want housing that allows them to live independently as they age. But there aren't a lot of suitable …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021