Can Britain's Common Toads Be Saved from Traffic and Terrible Decline?

It's Friday evening at half past seven, but rather than heading to the pub or watching a film, I've caught a train to a town in Wiltshire to join volunteers from a amphibian rescue group. These dedicated individuals give up their nights to protect the native amphibian community.

A Worrying Decline in Numbers

The Bufo bufo is growing more uncommon. A latest research led by an wildlife conservation group showed that the UK toad population have dropped by half since 1985. Seeing a species that has been a stalwart of the British countryside in decrease is described as "worrying" by researchers. Toads "don't need very particular environments" and "ought to live quite well in most of areas in Britain," meaning if even they are struggling to persist, "it kind of suggests that the ecosystem is unbalanced."

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

The Threat from Roads

Though the study didn't cover the reasons for the decline, traffic is a major factor. Calculations suggest that 20 tonnes of toads are crushed on UK roads annually – in other words, hundreds of thousands. Unlike frogs, which would probably be content to mate "if you left out a bucket of water," toads favor large ponds. Their ability to remain away from water for more time than frogs means they can travel further to reach them – often hundreds of metres. They usually stick to their ancestral migration routes – it's typical for adult toads to return to their birth pond to mate.

Migration Patterns

Fittingly, the first toads begin their quest for a partner around February 14th, but some move as late as spring, 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."

A local helper, who grew up in the region and has been working to save its amphibians since he was a boy, explains that "They've got just one focus: to go and have an orgy." If their path happens to a street, they could be killed by traffic, and that mating period would never happen – preventing a new generation of toads from being produced.

Toad Patrols Across the UK

Seeing many of toad carcasses on nearby streets "resonates deeply with people," and has resulted in the formation of toad patrols across the UK – hundreds of organizations are currently registered with a national initiative. These groups collect toads and transport them over streets in containers, as well as recording the quantity of toads they find and advocating for other protection measures, such as road closures and underground wildlife tunnels.

Volunteers usually work during the breeding period, when amphibian movements are more regular. However, this means they can miss groups of young toads, which, having existed as eggs and then tadpoles, exit their water habitats over an unpredictable schedule in the end of summer. Because of their small stature – just one or two centimetres wide – "they are destroyed by vehicles." And as being hit "basically turns them into mush," it's harder to get data on them. At least when adult toads are killed, their remains can be counted.

Year-Round Efforts

In contrast to most patrols, a specific volunteer group, who are in their eighth season of functioning, go out year-round – not every night, but whenever conditions are warm and wet, or if someone has reported about a toad sighting in their group chat. When I ask to join them on patrol, they concede it is "not a toady night" – winter dormancy has started and it's been a arid period – but several of the helpers gamely agree to patrol their area with me and see what we can find. "If anyone can locate any toads tonight, those two will spot one," says the group coordinator, 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 check under some wood.

Community Participation

The mother and son joined the group a year and a half ago. The teenager loves all things nature-related and has an ambition to become a conservationist, so his parent started to search for activities they could do jointly to help native animals. Now she loves it as much as he does, the 41-year-old small business owner explains – so when the group was looking for a new manager recently, she volunteered for the role.

The teenager, too, has played an important role in the organization. A clip he created, urging the municipal authority to block a street through a protected area during migration season, swung the decision the group's way. After a twelve months of campaigning, the authority approved an "access-only" rule between 5pm and 5am from February through to spring. Most drivers respected and avoided the road.

Other Wildlife and Difficulties

Several cars go by when I'm out on duty and we discover some victims as a result – no amphibians, but several crushed salamanders. We spot one living newt as well, and the youngster is particularly pleased to see a harvestman, which dances in his palms. Yet despite the group's best efforts to show me a toad, the local population has obviously gone dormant for the colder months. It seems that I wouldn't have had any better success anywhere else in the country – all the patrol groups I contact clarify that it's very difficult at this time of year.

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

One email I receive from another volunteer, who has generously made the effort to check for toads in a noted location, thought to be the largest accurately monitored toad group in the UK, reaches me with the subject line: "No toads." However, in February and March, he informs me, the group plans to assist around ten thousand mature amphibians over the street.

Impact and Limitations

How much of a difference can these organizations truly achieve? "The reality that volunteers are doing this regularly on cold, damp and unpleasant late nights is quite extraordinary," says an expert. "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 not the only threat.

Other Dangers

The global warming has resulted in longer periods of dry weather, which create the poor environment for some of the animals that toads eat, such as invertebrates, while higher water temperatures have caused an rise of blue-green algae, which can be harmful to toads. Milder winters also cause toads to wake up from their dormancy more often, disrupting the energy conservation vital to their life cycle. Loss of environment – particularly the disappearance of big water bodies – is an additional threat.

Experts are "always a bit worried about putting too much of a utilitarian spin on biodiversity," however "It's important in just their presence." But toads do have an important role in the food chain, consuming pretty much any small creatures or small animals they can swallow and in turn sustaining a number of predators, such as hedgehogs and otters. Enhancing conditions for toads – such as building water habitats, protecting forests and constructing amphibian passages – "benefits for a wide range of additional wildlife."

Cultural Significance

An additional motive to work to preserve toads present is their "historical significance," notes an specialist. Legends and tales around toads date back {centuries|hundred