Can the UK's Toads Survive from Traffic and Population Collapse?

It is a Friday evening at half past seven, but instead of heading to the pub or watching a film, I've taken a train to a market town in the countryside to meet up with volunteers from a amphibian rescue group. These committed people give up their evenings to protect the local toad population.

A Worrying Drop in Numbers

The Bufo bufo is becoming increasingly uncommon. A recent research conducted by an wildlife conservation group showed that the UK toad population have dropped by half since 1985. Observing a creature that has been a stalwart of the British countryside in decline is described as "worrying" by experts. Toads "don't require very specific conditions" and "should be able to live quite well in the majority of areas in Britain," so if even they are not managing to survive, "it kind of suggests that the ecosystem is unbalanced."

The UK toad population has almost halved since 1985

The Danger from Traffic

Though the research didn't examine the causes for the decline, traffic certainly plays a part. Calculations indicate that 20 tons of toads are crushed on British roads every year – that is, several hundred thousand. Unlike frogs, which would probably be happy to mate "with just a small container," toads prefer large ponds. Their ability to remain away from water for longer than frogs means they can journey farther to find them – sometimes hundreds of metres. They usually follow their traditional paths – it's common for adult toads to return to their natal pond to mate.

Migration Patterns

Fittingly, the first toads begin their quest for a mate around February 14th, but others travel as late as spring, waiting until it gets dark and moving after sunset. During that time, toads begin migrating from wherever they have been hibernating "almost simultaneously."

A local helper, who grew up in the area and has been working to save its toad population since he was a child, notes that "Their sole purpose: to go and have an orgy." If their route crosses a road, they could be killed by traffic, and that breeding season would be lost – stopping a new generation of toads from being produced.

Toad Patrols Throughout the United Kingdom

Seeing hundreds 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 officially listed with a national initiative. These groups pick up toads and transport them across roads in containers, as well as counting the quantity of toads they encounter and lobbying for other safety solutions, such as road closures and underground wildlife tunnels.

Volunteers usually work during the migration season, when amphibian movements are more regular. However, this implies they can overlook groups of toadlets, which, having been spawn and then juveniles, exit their water habitats over an unpredictable schedule 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 "basically turns them into mush," it's harder to get data on them. At least when mature amphibians are killed, their remains can be tallied.

Annual Work

In contrast to many groups, one local team, who are in their eighth season of operating, go out throughout the year – not nightly, but whenever conditions are warm and wet, 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 willingly accept to patrol their route with me and see what we can find. "Should anyone can find any toads tonight, that pair will spot one," says the patrol manager, pointing to her teenage child and the experienced member. After for 120 minutes without a glimpse of any amphibians, and now they have climbed over a wire barrier to check under some logs.

Family Involvement

The family duo became part of the group a while back. The teenager loves all things nature-related and has an ambition to become a conservationist, so his parent started to search for things they could do jointly to protect local wildlife. Now she enjoys it as much as he does, the middle-aged small business owner tells me – so when the group was looking for a fresh coordinator recently, she volunteered for the role.

The teenager, too, has played an important role in the organization. A video he created, urging the municipal authority to block a street through a nature reserve during breeding time, swung the decision the group's way. After a twelve months of campaigning, the authority approved an "restricted access" rule between 5pm and 5am from late winter through to April. Most drivers respected and avoided the route.

Additional Species and Difficulties

A few cars go by when I'm out on patrol and we find some casualties as a result – no toads, but three squashed newts. We see one live amphibian as well, and the teenager is particularly pleased to see a harvestman, which dances in his hands. Yet despite the group's hardest attempts to let me see a toad, the local population has obviously gone dormant for the colder months. It appears that I wouldn't have had any more luck anywhere else in the nation – all the rescue teams I reach out to clarify that it's near-impossible at this season.

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

One email I get from a different helper, who has generously made the effort to check for toads in a noted location, considered 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 expects to help around ten thousand adult toads across the road.

Effectiveness and Limitations

How much of a difference can these organizations actually make? "The fact that volunteers are doing this regularly on chilly, wet and miserable late nights is quite extraordinary," says an expert. "That's something that very much deserves recognition." However, while rescue teams are able to slow the decline, they cannot prevent it entirely – partly since traffic is not the only threat.

Additional Threats

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 worms and slugs, while warmer ponds have caused an rise of blue-green algae, which can be toxic to toads. Milder winters also lead toads to wake up from their dormancy more frequently, disrupting the resource preservation crucial to their existence. Habitat destruction – particularly the loss of big water bodies – is an additional threat.

Experts are "always a bit worried about putting too much of a utilitarian spin on biodiversity," but "There is a big value in just their presence." But toads do have an important role in the ecosystem, consuming pretty much any small creatures or tiny organisms they can fit in their mouths and in turn sustaining a variety of predators, such as hedgehogs and otters. Enhancing situations for toads – ie creating more ponds, conserving woodland and constructing toad tunnels – "we'll improve them for a whole bunch of additional wildlife."

Cultural Significance

Another reason to try to keep toads present is their "important cultural value," adds an specialist. Myths and folklore around toads go back {centuries|hundred