Rare creature — with ‘striking’ blue color — seen in Washington for first time in years

A rare creature with “iridescent” coloring was spotted in Washington for the first time in five years, officials said.

Wildlife technicians were surveying for northern leopard frogs in Grant County when they found one with unusual coloring, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife said in a June 12 Facebook post.

Northern leopard frogs are usually brown or green, officials said.

So when wildlife workers saw one with a “striking iridescent blue color,” they deemed it an “extremely rare sight.”

Plus, a blue northern leopard frog has not been seen in Washington since 2019, wildlife officials said.

Sightings have also been few in the past 15 years as the frog population declines and was last known to populate the Columbia Basin Wildlife Area, officials said.

Wildlife officials are working to recover the frog species.

The northern leopard frog was listed as endangered in Washington but hasn’t been federally listed as anything, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The medium-sized frog has round or oval dark spots with a light border and a cream or white belly, according to wildlife officials.

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