Will Britain's Common Toads Survive from Roads and Population Collapse?

It's a Friday evening at 7:30, but rather than heading to the pub or relaxing at home, I've caught a train to a market town in the countryside to join local helpers from a amphibian rescue group. These committed people give up their evenings to safeguard the native amphibian community.

A Worrying Decline in Population

The common toad is growing more rare. A recent research conducted by an amphibian and reptile charity showed that the UK toad population have almost halved since 1985. Seeing a creature that has been a fixture of the British countryside in decrease is described as "concerning" by experts. Toads "don't require very specific conditions" and "should be able to live quite well in the majority of habitats in Britain," so if even they are not managing to survive, "it indicates that things are not as they should be."

The UK toad population has almost halved since 1985

The Threat from Traffic

Though the study didn't examine the causes for the decline, traffic is a major factor. Estimates suggest that 20 tons of toads are killed on UK roads annually – in other words, several hundred thousand. In contrast to frogs, which would probably be happy to mate "with just a bucket of water," toads favor large ponds. Their ability to stay out of water for longer than frogs allows they can travel further to find them – often hundreds of metres. They tend to stick to their ancestral migration routes – it's typical for adult toads to return to their natal pond to mate.

Migration Habits

Appropriately enough, the initial amphibians begin their quest for a partner around February 14th, but some move as late as April, until it gets night and travelling after sunset. During that period, toads start moving from where they have been overwintering "all pretty much at the same time."

One volunteer, who grew up in the area and has been working to save its amphibians since he was a boy, notes that "They've got just one focus: to go and mate." If their route happens to a road, they could be killed by traffic, and that mating period would be lost – preventing a next generation of toads from being born.

Rescue Groups Throughout the UK

Seeing hundreds of toad carcasses on nearby streets "resonates deeply with people," and has resulted in the creation of toad patrols throughout the UK – hundreds of organizations are currently registered with a national initiative. These groups collect toads and carry them across roads in buckets, as well as counting the number of toads they find and lobbying for other safety solutions, such as blocked roads and amphibian passages.

Volunteers tend to operate during the migration season, when toad crossings are frequent. However, this implies they can overlook groups of young toads, which, having been spawn and then juveniles, exit their ponds over an irregular timetable in the end of summer. Because of their size – just a couple of cm wide – "they are destroyed by car traffic." And as being hit "essentially crushes them," it's harder to collect information on them. At least when adult toads are lost, their carcasses can be counted.

Annual Efforts

Unlike many groups, one local team, who are in their eighth year of operating, go out year-round – not every night, but when conditions are damp, or if a member has reported about a amphibian spotting in their group chat. When I request to accompany them on patrol, they admit it is "not ideal conditions" – toad hibernation season has begun and it's been a dry day – but several of the helpers gamely agree to patrol their route with me and see what we can find. "Should anyone can find any toads tonight, those two will find one," says the patrol manager, pointing to her 14-year-old son and the longtime volunteer. We've been out for 120 minutes without a single toad sighting, and now they have scaled a barbed wire fence to inspect beneath some logs.

Family Involvement

The mother and son became part of the group a year and a half ago. The youngster loves all things wildlife and has an ambition to become a conservationist, so his parent started to search for things they could do jointly to protect native animals. Now she enjoys it as much as he does, the 41-year-old entrepreneur explains – so when the group was seeking a fresh coordinator lately, she decided to step up.

The youth, too, has played an important role in the organization. A clip he made, urging the municipal authority to block a street through a nature reserve during migration season, influenced the outcome the group's way. After a year of lobbying, the authority approved an "restricted access" restriction between 5pm and 5am from late winter through to April. The majority of motorists duly avoided the route.

Additional Species and Challenges

A few cars go by when I'm out on duty and we find some victims as a consequence – no amphibians, but three squashed newts. We spot one living newt as well, and the teenager is especially excited to see a daddy longlegs, which moves in his palms. Yet in spite of the group's hardest attempts to let me see a toad, the native community has obviously gone dormant for the winter. It appears that I couldn't have found any better success elsewhere in the country – all the patrol groups I reach out to explain that it's very difficult at this time of year.

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

One email I get from a different helper, who has kindly made the effort to look for toads in a noted location, thought to be the largest accurately monitored toad group in the UK, arrives in my inbox with the subject line: "No toads." However, in February and March, he tells me, the team expects to help around 10,000 adult toads across the road.

Impact and Limitations

What level of impact can these organizations actually make? "The reality that people are performing this consistently on chilly, wet and miserable late nights is remarkable," says an researcher. "This effort that very much deserves recognition." However, while toad patrols are able to slow the decline, they cannot prevent it entirely – partly since traffic is just one danger.

Other Dangers

The climate crisis has meant extended spells of dry weather, which cause the wrong conditions for some of the creatures that toads eat, such as worms and slugs, while warmer ponds have led to an rise of toxic plants, which can be harmful to toads. Warmer cold seasons also lead toads to wake up from their dormancy more often, interfering with the energy conservation crucial to their life cycle. Loss of environment – particularly the disappearance of big water bodies – is another menace.

Experts are "always a bit worried about putting too much of a utilitarian spin on biodiversity," however "There is a big value in just their presence." But toads play an significant part in the ecosystem, eating pretty much any invertebrates or small animals they can fit in their mouths and in turn sustaining a number of predators, such as hedgehogs and otters. Enhancing situations for toads – ie creating more ponds, protecting forests and constructing toad tunnels – "we'll improve them for a wide range of additional wildlife."

Cultural Significance

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