Will Britain's Toads Be Saved from Traffic and Population Collapse?

It's Friday night at 7:30, but rather than going out or relaxing at home, I've caught a train to a market town in Wiltshire to meet up with local helpers from a amphibian rescue group. These dedicated individuals sacrifice their nights to safeguard the local toad population.

A Worrying Drop in Population

The Bufo bufo is growing more uncommon. A latest research led by an amphibian and reptile charity revealed that the UK toad population have almost halved since 1985. Observing a creature that has been a fixture of the British countryside in decrease is labeled "concerning" by experts. Toads "don't need very particular environments" and "should be able to live successfully in the majority of areas in the UK," meaning if even they are not managing to survive, "it indicates that the ecosystem is unbalanced."

The UK toad population has almost halved since 1985

The Threat from Roads

Though the study didn't examine the reasons for the decline, traffic is a major factor. Calculations indicate that 20 tons of toads are killed on UK roads annually – in other words, several hundred thousand. Unlike frogs, which would probably be happy to mate "if you left out a bucket of water," toads favor big bodies of water. Their ability to stay out of water for more time than frogs allows they can journey farther to reach them – sometimes long distances. They tend to stick to their ancestral migration routes – it's typical for adult toads to return to their birth pond to mate.

Migration Patterns

Fittingly, the initial amphibians begin their quest for a mate around Valentine's day, but some move as late as spring, waiting until it gets night and travelling through the night. During that period, toads begin migrating from where they have been overwintering "all pretty much at the same time."

One volunteer, who was raised in the area and has been working to save its toad population since he was a boy, notes that "They've got just one focus: to go and mate." If their route crosses a road, they could be killed by traffic, and that breeding season would be lost – preventing a new generation of toads from being produced.

Toad Patrols Across the United Kingdom

Seeing many of toad carcasses on nearby streets "inherently strikes a chord with people," and has resulted in the formation of toad patrols across the UK – 274 groups are currently registered with a national initiative. These groups pick up toads and carry them across roads in containers, as well as counting the quantity of toads they find and lobbying for other protection measures, such as blocked roads and amphibian passages.

Volunteers tend to operate during the breeding period, when amphibian movements are more regular. However, this means they can overlook groups of toadlets, which, having existed as spawn and then tadpoles, exit their water habitats over an unpredictable schedule in late summer. Because of their size – just one or two centimetres wide – "they are destroyed by car traffic." And as being run over "basically turns them into mush," it's more difficult to get data on them. At least when adult toads are killed, their remains can be counted.

Year-Round Efforts

Unlike most patrols, a specific volunteer group, who are in their eighth year of operating, go out throughout the year – not every night, but whenever weather are damp, or if a member has reported about a amphibian spotting in their group chat. When I ask to join them on patrol, they admit it is "not a toady night" – winter dormancy has started and it's been a arid period – but several of the volunteers gamely agree to patrol their route with me and see what we can find. "If anyone can find any toads tonight, those two will find one," says the group coordinator, pointing to her 14-year-old son and the longtime volunteer. We've been out for two hours without a glimpse of any amphibians, and now they have climbed over a barbed wire fence to inspect beneath some wood.

Community Involvement

The family duo became part of the group a year and a half ago. The youngster adores all things nature-related and has an goal to become a conservationist, so his parent started to look for activities they could do jointly to help local wildlife. Now she loves it as much as he does, the middle-aged entrepreneur tells me – so when the group was seeking a new manager recently, she volunteered for the role.

The youth, too, has been instrumental in the group. A video he made, urging the local council to block a street through a nature reserve during breeding time, influenced the outcome the group's way. After a year of campaigning, the authority agreed to an "access-only" rule between evening and morning from late winter through to spring. The majority of motorists duly avoided the road.

Other Wildlife and Challenges

Several vehicles go past when I'm out on patrol and we find some victims as a consequence – no amphibians, but several crushed salamanders. We see one live amphibian as well, and the teenager is particularly pleased to see a harvestman, which moves in his palms. Yet in spite of the team's best efforts to show me a toad, the local population has clearly settled down for the colder months. It seems that I wouldn't have had any better success anywhere else in the country – all the rescue teams I contact explain that it's very difficult at this time of year.

This team anticipates assisting around ten thousand mature toads over the street

A message I get from a different helper, who has generously made the effort to check for toads in a famous site, thought to be the biggest tracked toad population in the UK, arrives in my inbox with the subject line: "None found." However, in late winter, he informs me, the group expects to help approximately 10,000 mature amphibians over the street.

Effectiveness and Challenges

What level of impact can these organizations actually make? "The fact that volunteers are performing this consistently on chilly, wet and miserable evenings is remarkable," says an researcher. "This effort that very much deserves recognition." However, while rescue teams are able to slow the decline, they can't stop it completely – not least because traffic is just one danger.

Other Dangers

The global warming has resulted in extended spells of dry weather, which create the poor environment for some of the animals that toads eat, such as invertebrates, while warmer ponds have led to an rise of blue-green algae, which can be harmful to toads. Milder winters also lead toads to wake up from their dormancy more often, interfering with the energy conservation crucial to their life cycle. Habitat destruction – especially the disappearance of big water bodies – is another menace.

Experts are "always a bit worried about overemphasizing practical benefits on wildlife," but "There is a big value in just having these animals around." But toads do have an significant part in the ecosystem, eating almost any invertebrates or small animals they can swallow and in turn feeding a number of predators, such as hedgehogs and otters. Improving conditions for toads – such as building water habitats, protecting forests and installing toad tunnels – "we'll improve them for a wide range of other species."

Historical Significance

An additional motive to work to preserve toads present is their "important cultural value," notes an specialist. Legends and tales around toads go back {centuries|hundred