Seven Toads! A New Record!

So I am a little obsessed with the toads that come out at night around our home. I feel kind of blessed to live in a toad-friendly habitat. Every night after the sun goes down I head out on my nightly toad hunt. Armed with a flashlight I sneak around and count the night's toads.

Tonight was a particularly good toad night. I found seven. One was brand new. I have never seen him before. He is just a babe, only 1 1/2 inches long. The others were about three inches. I didn't see my favorite toad tonight. He covers the palm of my hand when I pick him up. However, I did see three in an unusual color phase, with red rings around their warts.

Now come to think of it, it was a good day for amphibians in general. I moved a bunch of cages this morning and a frog fell into my rubber boot against my bare leg. Kind of creepy and cool at the same time.

Sue, that last tidbit about the toad falling into your boot, that made my morning Glad to hear there are places still freindly to such environmentally sensitive critters!

Toads, now ain't they cool, we got em here too. A big one comes on our deck at night, he is about the size of your big dude I would think. I love toads and frogs. I particularly like to listen to bull frogs, they sound like a big cow mooing. What a neat thing to do. Maybe I will go out too on a toad hunt and see what I can find, never thought to do that, but I have a flashlight and I have darkness and I have the desire to go toad watching and counting. Maybe this night I'll do that thing, sounds like fun!! Keep counting, Sue, love to hear these stories. Beautiful and awesome days, CynthiaM.

You will have to bring a camera with you for the next few nights and take a pic of the red ring toad!

I will take pictures next time. The problem will be the lighting.

Cynthia, I would love to see pictures of your toads too!

I like the hopping uglies too.
This is the first year I have seen them here. It has been wet enough that they are around the house I think. They are cool, I will have to take a closer look at them now that you have said what yours look like.

The frogs are how we know spring is here. Every year we eagerly await the twilight chorus of croakers in our front bog.

Toads I worry about. When we moved here 20 years ago we used to see a lot of Alberta toads, these big beefy toads with red. We hardly see them anymore. It's discouraging not seeing them.

So glad to see more people that like toads
and frogs.
People sometime think I am nuts for liking
them.
But they eat bugs and anything that eat bugs
I like.
I put out a clay tray with water in it for them.
Last night there was only two one the size of
my hand and green the other 1/2 the size and brown.
We used to have a lot more.

You must not let your ducks run around
Here my Pekin ducks are always chasing frogs
and they are so funny when they catch them to eat them they run around from the other ducks with the legs hanging out of their bill They are the best Frog catchers around

appway wrote:You must not let your ducks run around
Here my Pekin ducks are always chasing frogs
and they are so funny when they catch them to eat them they run around from the other ducks with the legs hanging out of their bill They are the best Frog catchers around

That's some sight that comes to mind reading your post.

Sue, oh this could be fun, never thought of going out with camera in tow. Last night we were at a dinner, so couldn't get out. But maybe tonight, my camera lives in my back pocket, just have to turn on the flasher. A little pan of water, hmmmmm....gonna set that up tonight. I know where the big toad lives. He lives below the container that has the power toys lined up for repair, right beside us....I know his haunt. I bet he would like a nice warm dish of water and I'll set it a little distance from his entranceway. Anyways, checking it out, beautiful days, CynthiaM.

.

Tara, yep, saw the widdle iddle froggie in the picture after you go to the pond, third pic from bottom, so cute inside the pond lily. Aren't pictures just the best of the best!!

When I went to put my runner on this morning, there was a toad in my shoe, smiling. I put him in the front of the hole under the container where I think the grand-daddy frog lives, hope they aren't territorial and I have reaked havoc in the family, sigh...never thought about that until later on , I took a picture of it on my phone though, my camera battery was charging, after losing the power filming the sheep last night, sigh....need to get pics downloaded to my computer from my phone I guess. be figuring that one out soon, do have that with me always too, and sometimes the phone is just more convenient, coooool topic, Sue, again, thanks for the beginnings of something so strong!! Beautiful days, CynthiaM.

Well, I am back from a vintage motorcycle rally in Ponoka, and what do I see... the toad topic has take off! Tara, our terrific toad tantalizer has taken a tremendous.... frog picture! Way to ruin my alliteration, Tara! I plan to go out with my camera tonight and see what I can find.

Our toads are called Western toads.

We also have many Wood Frogs that come in all colors and sizes. There are itty bitty Chorus Frogs that I have not seen in a while, but the last year we lived near Spruce Grove I caught over 100 in one summer on the little 2 acre plot we had our house on.

Finally, we also have the glorious Barred Tiger Salamander. I know they are here because I catch a few of their larva every spring for the classroom pond from the beaver pond across the field behind us. Then I return the weird voracious offspring with four legs, a tail AND external gills to the same pond every year. I have never seen the elusive adults here, but we had many in the old place.

Sadly the last time I saw a leopard frog in Alberta, I was as a kid. We caught one in the back yard. That was it until a camping trip to Cyprus Hills in Sakachewan where there was a series of beaver dams and hundreds of the endangered hoppers! I was so excited to see them I was leaping in the air!

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I found four toads last night.

Here is a toad poop:

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At first I thought that was all I was going to see. Then it got later and four more came out.

Here is the red one:

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Here is a big one, but not the biggest I have seen:

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Here is a smaller one hiding by the garage:

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And here is one just coming out of his little hole:

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oh coool!! The one in your hand that the pictures has the yellow hue...boy does he have a grumpy look on his face, smiling. We had rain last night and couldn't get out to look for any toads, maybe tonight. Those were just awesome pictures and I loved the toads!! Have a wonderful day, CynthiaM.

Eeeewwww! You held that lumpy thing in your hand now you are going to get WARTS!

Great pictures of the ugly dudes.

I am LOVING this thread!
I have a huge toad in my little pond. It's bigger than my hand. I have seen it mating with a smaller one in years past but this year my lily pad plant went bonkers and I can't see any surface water for the pads, so I don't see the toads floating there doing their toady wild thing. But I do see him/her sometimes so I know at least one of them is around, and come to think of it, I spotted some pollywogs in there one weekend so I guess the wild toady is happening in there.

I will see if I can entice it to come onto the grass and I'll snap some pictures. It's truly the largest toad I have ever seen.

here is another picture for your collection.

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Sure love those big plump toads you posted. I have a soft spot for the lumpy little guys.

Jocelyn

Jocelyn, how many frogs in your picture!? I count 22! Do you know what kind they are?

farmchiq wrote:I am LOVING this thread!
I have a huge toad in my little pond. It's bigger than my hand. I have seen it mating with a smaller one in years past but this year my lily pad plant went bonkers and I can't see any surface water for the pads, so I don't see the toads floating there doing their toady wild thing. But I do see him/her sometimes so I know at least one of them is around, and come to think of it, I spotted some pollywogs in there one weekend so I guess the wild toady is happening in there.

I will see if I can entice it to come onto the grass and I'll snap some pictures. It's truly the largest toad I have ever seen.

How does one entice a toad?

I'm not sure how many, 20 some. They are leopard frogs, just little guys. They'll be 3 or 4 inches later when they grow up. We have a wood frog too, he has spectacles, well, a mask on his face. It hasn't rained much here, so all the little things have come where they can get water. It is raining today, thankfully. We have a saucer of water for them, and then some flower pots on their sides to hide in. There are a lot of them in the windbreak we planted last year.

Jocelyn