On patrol with Toad Patrol - Conservation in action

  • Published
  • By Judith Wakelam
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
RAF MILDENHALL, England --  Here in the United Kingdom we have several means of crossing a road safely. We have Zebra crossings, Pelican crossings, lollypop crossings, railway crossings and then we have toad crossings!

"Toad crossings," I hear you say. "What's that all about?"

Well, I'll tell you...

Every spring, dedicated bands of volunteers up and down the country - and that includes me - assist thousands of toads to cross roads in order to get to their breeding ponds.

The common toad, Bufo bufo, is Britain's largest and heaviest amphibian and can be found almost anywhere. Toads are an asset to any garden as they eat insects, slugs, snails and worms. They spend most of their life out of water, but on reaching maturity at three to four years, they return to the place where they themselves developed in order to breed.

This year's breeding season started late due to a very cold spell. The toads began their journey to the water mid-March; a month later than usual.

Come spring, they emerge from hibernation and begin what for many will be a life or death journey. Problems arise for a slow moving toad when a road has to be crossed, and this is where toad patrol comes in!

Our patch is the road that leads to West Stow Country Park, off the A1101 to Bury St. Edmunds. This area may well be known to many of you for its Anglo Saxon Village and lakeside walks, and it's the lake that draws not only people but toads.

Our patrol's driving force are three dedicated conservationists; Pat, Ian and Chris. They organize us volunteers with military precision. With guidance from an organization called "Froglife," signs warning motorists of toads crossing are erected, then a barrier about a foot high is put up stretching for over half of the one mile of road that the toads cross, parallel with the lake. This barrier prevents most, but unfortunately not all, of the toads from getting onto the road, but it also creates a toad jam, which is where toad patrol comes in.

As this phenomenon takes place mainly from dusk till dawn, suitable attire consisting of warm waterproof clothing, high visibility jacket, boots, rubber gloves, bucket and torch (flashlight) are required. Once briefed, we begin the patrolling of the barrier and collection of the toads.

The first few nights see mainly male toads; they seem to arrive first and wait in ambush for the much larger females. By night three, the pace begins to heat up and there are many females as well as males arriving; some of them already have one or more males latched onto their backs -- there's a lot of competition in the toad world! Some are even trying to cross during daylight hours so daytime patrols are also needed.

Being bent over for several hours at a time picking up toads is pretty back-breaking stuff and I begin to wonder just how many toads we need! My busiest night saw me pick up 728 in the space of five hours! But, I only have to see one squashed toad on the road to know why I'm here. Toads will walk vast distances to breed and it's a heartbreaking sight to see one, only yards from its goal; squashed flat on the road after all its efforts.

By week three, some toads are making the return journey but in much less numbers; many seem to just disappear until the following spring when it all begins again.

Once the toads have made it to the water the female lays anything up to 3,000 eggs which will be fertilized by the male. Toad spawn is laid in two long strings rather than a mass as in frogspawn. The eggs hatch within two to three weeks and within two to three months the tadpoles will have developed into toadlets. The vast number of young that develop bears little resemblance to the number that will survive. The tiny toadlets have many predators. If lucky enough to avoid all of life's perils, toads can live for an incredible 40 years.

Our total of toads collected this year is in excess of 9,000 -- last year's final figure was under 4,000; a vast increase! Once final figures are in, it will be interesting to know if toad numbers are up countrywide or, if it's just that Suffolk's toads have heard that it's safer to head for West Stow Country Park!