Toad
(Bufo bufo)
There is no more awful fate in fairytales than to be turned into a toad, but you could do worse. These fascinating creatures do not deserve the bad press they have had over the centuries.
The common toad is, as the name suggests, not especially rare, as is shown when they gather for a huge spawning swarm in mid-March. They are one of three amphibians likely to be found around Killearn, along with the common frog and palmate newt.
They are out and about from late spring through summer and can be found in your garden in cool damp places: long grass, under plant pots, in compost heaps. They make feeding forays in other parts of the garden at night and are good friends to have around, since they eat slugs as well as beetles, woodlice and flies.
Fascinating fact:
Toads are superb at defending themselves. Their warty skin exudes a nasty-tasting and slightly toxic substance which is enough to make anything spit them out. When upset they can scream and empty their bladder over you. Their bladder is always full because they use it to store water which they do not really want to lose, but they will do it if pushed. Toads also raise themselves and puff themselves up if they feel threatened, which may have inspired the pompous character of Mr Toad in The Wind in the Willows.
Toads start as eggs, then become tadpoles, juveniles and breeding adults. Their breeding season tends to run a fortnight later than the frog’s, with adults shuttling between land and water to reproduce.
They need a pond for breeding and their larval stages but at other times they live across a range of habitats. They prefer cool damp places, although higher levels of a protein called keratin in their skin allows them to stand drier conditions than frogs.
Toads slow down in autumn and start finding places to hibernate. Some may sleep in gardens but most will be holed up in ponds by mid-October and will not reappear until spring.
As eggs and larvae, toads are food for a range of birds, animals and fish. But as tadpoles they develop the toxicity which protects them all their lives. It deters many predators, although otters have learned to skin and eat toads.
In mediaeval times toads were associated with black magic and witchcraft. If a toad was found in your house you could be accused of witchcraft.
Toads are not under severe threat in the UK, but local populations are vulnerable to humans draining their breeding ponds or building roads across their migratory mating routes. When they travel, they risk being hit by cars or falling into gully pots in roads.
If you would like to help toads, build a pond or bog garden if you have the space. Make sure your garden is not too tidy and has some dead wood/compost heaps where toads can shelter.
Did you know
Frogs hop, but toads crawl.