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It is Friday evening at half past seven, but instead of heading to the pub or watching a film, I've taken a train to a town in the countryside to join local helpers from a toad patrol. These committed people sacrifice their evenings to protect the native amphibian community.

A Worrying Decline in Numbers

The Bufo bufo is becoming increasingly uncommon. A recent study conducted by an amphibian and reptile charity revealed 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 labeled "concerning" by researchers. Toads "don't need very specific conditions" and "ought to live successfully in most of habitats in Britain," meaning if even they are not managing to survive, "it kind of suggests that things are not as they should be."

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

The Threat from Traffic

Though the study didn't cover the causes for the drop, cars certainly plays a part. Calculations indicate that 20 tonnes of toads are crushed on UK roads every year – in other words, several hundred thousand. Unlike frogs, which might be happy to mate "if you left out a bucket of water," toads favor large ponds. Their ability to stay out of water for longer than frogs means they can travel further to reach them – often long distances. They tend to follow their traditional paths – it's typical for adult toads to go back to their natal pond to mate.

Migration Habits

Fittingly, the first toads start their journey for a partner around Valentine's day, but some move as late as spring, waiting until it gets dark and travelling through the night. During that period, toads begin migrating from where they have been hibernating "almost simultaneously."

One volunteer, who grew up in the area and has been working to save its amphibians since he was a child, explains that "They've got just one focus: to go and have an orgy." If their route crosses a street, they could be killed by traffic, and that breeding season would be lost – stopping a new generation of toads from being born.

Toad Patrols Across the United Kingdom

Seeing hundreds of dead toads on local roads "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 carry them across roads in containers, as well as counting the quantity of toads they encounter and advocating for other safety solutions, such as road closures and amphibian passages.

Patrols usually work during the breeding period, when toad crossings are frequent. However, this means they can miss groups of young toads, which, having existed as spawn and then juveniles, leave their ponds over an irregular timetable in late summer. Because of their small stature – just a couple of cm wide – "they can get obliterated 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 remains can be tallied.

Year-Round Work

In contrast to most patrols, a specific volunteer group, who are in their eighth season of operating, go out year-round – not nightly, but whenever weather are damp, or if someone has posted about a toad sighting in their messaging app. When I request to accompany them on patrol, they concede it is "not ideal conditions" – toad hibernation season has begun and it's been a dry day – but several of the helpers willingly accept to walk up and down their area with me and search for any toads. "If anyone can locate any toads tonight, that pair will find one," says the group coordinator, indicating her teenage child and the experienced member. After for two hours without a single toad sighting, and now they have climbed over a wire barrier to inspect beneath some logs.

Community Involvement

The family duo became part of the patrol a while back. The teenager loves all things nature-related and has an ambition to become a conservationist, so his mother started to look for activities they could do together to protect local wildlife. Now she loves it as much as he does, the 41-year-old small business owner explains – so when the group was seeking a new manager lately, she volunteered for the role.

The teenager, too, has played an important role in the organization. A clip he made, imploring the local council to close 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 February through to spring. Most drivers duly avoided the route.

Other Wildlife and Challenges

Several vehicles go past when I'm out on duty and we discover some victims as a result – no amphibians, but several crushed salamanders. We spot one live amphibian as well, and the youngster is especially excited to see a daddy longlegs, which dances in his hands. Yet despite the team's best efforts to let me see a toad, the local population has clearly settled down for the colder months. It seems that I couldn't have found any better success anywhere else in the country – all the rescue teams I reach out to explain that it's near-impossible at this time of year.

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

One email I receive from a different helper, who has generously taken the trouble to check for toads in a noted location, considered the biggest tracked toad population in the UK, reaches me with the subject line: "None found." However, in late winter, he tells me, the group plans to assist approximately 10,000 mature amphibians over the street.

Effectiveness and Challenges

How much of a difference can these organizations actually make? "The reality that volunteers are doing this consistently on cold, damp and unpleasant late nights is remarkable," says an researcher. "That's something that very much deserves recognition." However, while toad patrols are able to reduce the drop, they can't stop it completely – partly since traffic is just one danger.

Additional Threats

The global warming has meant extended spells of dry weather, which create the wrong conditions for some of the animals that toads consume, such as worms and slugs, while higher water temperatures have caused an increase of blue-green algae, which can be harmful to toads. Milder winters also lead toads to emerge from their dormancy more often, interfering with the energy conservation crucial to their life cycle. Habitat destruction – particularly the loss of large ponds – is another menace.

Researchers are "often concerned about overemphasizing practical benefits on biodiversity," however "There is a big value in just their presence." But toads play an important role in the ecosystem, consuming almost any invertebrates or small animals they can fit in their mouths and in turn feeding a variety of birds and mammals, such as hedgehogs and otters. Enhancing situations for toads – such as building water habitats, protecting forests and installing amphibian passages – "we'll improve them for a whole bunch of other species."

Historical Importance

An additional motive to work to preserve toads around is their "important cultural value," notes an expert. Myths and folklore around toads date back {centuries|hundred