🔗 Share this article

It is Friday night at half past seven, but instead of going out or relaxing at home, I've caught a train to a town in Wiltshire to join volunteers from a amphibian rescue group. These dedicated individuals sacrifice their nights to safeguard the native amphibian community.

An Alarming Decline in Population

The common toad is becoming increasingly uncommon. A latest research led by an wildlife conservation group showed that the British common toad numbers have almost halved since 1985. Seeing a creature that has been a stalwart of the UK landscape in decrease is described as "concerning" by researchers. Toads "don't require very specific conditions" and "should be able to live successfully in most of habitats in the UK," meaning if even they are struggling to persist, "it indicates that things are not as they should be."

Toad populations across the UK have declined by almost 50% since the 1980s

The Threat from Traffic

Though the research didn't cover the reasons for the drop, cars is a major factor. Calculations indicate that 20 tons of toads are crushed on British roads every year – that is, hundreds of thousands. Unlike frogs, which would probably be content to mate "with just a small container," toads favor large ponds. Their ability to stay out of water for longer than frogs means they can travel further to reach them – sometimes long distances. They usually stick to their ancestral migration routes – it's common for mature amphibians to return to their birth pond to mate.

Breeding Habits

Fittingly, the first toads start their journey for a partner around Valentine's day, but some move as late as April, until it gets dark and travelling after sunset. During that time, toads begin migrating from where they have been overwintering "almost simultaneously."

One volunteer, who grew up in the area and has been trying to protect its amphibians since he was a boy, notes that "Their sole purpose: to go and mate." If their path happens to a road, they could all get run over, and that mating period would never happen – stopping a new generation of toads from being born.

Rescue Groups Throughout the UK

Seeing hundreds of dead toads on nearby streets "inherently strikes a chord with people," and has resulted in the formation of rescue teams across the UK – 274 groups are currently registered with a countrywide program. These teams collect toads and transport them over streets in buckets, as well as counting the number of toads they find and advocating for other protection measures, such as blocked roads and amphibian passages.

Patrols usually work during the breeding period, when amphibian movements are frequent. However, this implies they can overlook groups of young toads, which, having been eggs and then tadpoles, exit their ponds over an unpredictable schedule in the end of summer. Because of their small stature – just one or two centimetres wide – "they can get obliterated by car traffic." And as being hit "basically turns them into mush," it's harder to get data on them. At least when adult toads are lost, their remains can be counted.

Year-Round Work

Unlike many groups, one local team, who are in their eighth season of operating, go out throughout the year – not nightly, but when weather are damp, or if a member has reported about a toad sighting in their group chat. When I request to accompany them on duty, they admit it is "not a toady night" – winter dormancy has started and it's been a dry day – but a few of the volunteers willingly accept to walk up and down their route with me and search for any toads. "If anyone can find any toads tonight, that pair will find one," says the patrol manager, indicating her teenage child and the experienced member. After for 120 minutes without a glimpse of any amphibians, and now they have scaled a barbed wire fence to inspect beneath some wood.

Family Involvement

The mother and son joined the patrol a year and a half ago. The youngster adores all things wildlife and has an ambition to become a conservationist, so his mother started to search for things they could do together to help native animals. Now she enjoys it as much as he does, the 41-year-old entrepreneur explains – so when the team was seeking a fresh coordinator lately, she decided to step up.

The teenager, too, has played an important role in the organization. A video he created, urging the local council to close a street through a nature reserve during migration season, swung the decision the team's way. After a year of lobbying, the council agreed to an "access-only" rule between evening and morning from February through to spring. The majority of motorists respected and avoided the route.

Additional Species and Challenges

A few vehicles go by when I'm out on patrol and we find some victims as a consequence – no amphibians, but three squashed newts. We see one living newt as well, and the youngster is especially excited to see a harvestman, which moves in his hands. Yet despite the team's best efforts to let me see a toad, the native community has obviously settled down for the winter. It seems that I couldn't have found any better success elsewhere in the nation – all the rescue teams I reach out to clarify that it's near-impossible at this season.

The group expects to help approximately 10,000 adult toads across the road

One email I receive from another volunteer, who has generously taken the trouble to check for toads in a noted location, considered the biggest tracked toad population in the UK, reaches me with the title: "No toads." However, in February and March, he informs me, the group expects to help approximately 10,000 adult toads across the road.

Impact and Challenges

What level of impact can these organizations actually make? "The reality that volunteers are doing this consistently on chilly, wet and miserable late nights is remarkable," says an expert. "That's something that very much deserves recognition." However, while toad patrols are able to reduce the drop, they cannot prevent it entirely – partly since traffic is not the only threat.

Other Dangers

The climate crisis has resulted in longer periods of drought, which create the poor environment for some of the creatures that toads eat, such as worms and slugs, while warmer ponds have led to an rise of blue-green algae, which can be harmful to toads. Milder winters also cause toads to emerge from their dormancy more often, interfering with the resource preservation crucial to their life cycle. Loss of environment – especially the loss of big water bodies – is another menace.

Experts are "often concerned about putting too much of a utilitarian spin on wildlife," but "There is a big value in just their presence." But toads play an significant part in the ecosystem, eating pretty much any small creatures or small animals they can fit in their mouths and in turn sustaining a number of predators, such as wildlife. Improving conditions for toads – ie building water habitats, conserving woodland and constructing amphibian passages – "we'll improve them for a wide range of additional wildlife."

Historical Significance

An additional motive to work to preserve toads around is their "historical significance," notes an expert. Myths and folklore around toads date back {centuries|hundred