After a week of warm, rainy weather, the toads were calling last night. Their high-pitched, musical trills indicated that they were American toads, one of the more common amphibians in the eastern U.S. The males emerge from their winter burrows in late March or early April and soon gather at shallow ponds or temporary pools to breed; their song attracts the larger females, which lay up to 20,000 eggs in long, gelatinous strips. The eggs will hatch into small, black tadpoles within 10-12 days and these will morph into toadlets by June.
Recognized by their dry, warty skin and a large parotid gland behind each eye, the American toad favors rocky woodlands but is also common in Midwestern suburbs. Solitary creatures, toads are primarily nocturnal, spending the day under rocks, logs or shrubs. They are most often seen at dusk as they hunt for insects, slugs, worms and moths; since they feed on many destructive insects, they are a welcome resident in any garden.
