American toad
| American Toad | |
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| Species: | B. americanus
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| Binomial name | |
| Bufo americanus | |
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| Habitat range of B. americanus | |
The American toad (Bufo americanus) is a common species of toad found throughout the eastern United States and Canada.
Tadpoles
The young of the American Toad are laid in two strings and can hatch in 3-12 days. When hatched they are recognizable by their skinny tails in relation to the size of their bodies. The tadpoles may advance to adulthood in 30-40 days. When completed the toadlets may stay in the water for a short period of time before they become mostly land based.
Eastern American toad
The Eastern American toad (B. a. americanus) is a medium sized toad usually found in the range from 2 to over 3 1/2 inches. The color and pattern is somewhat variable. The Eastern American toad has spots that contain only one to two warts. It also has enlarged warts on the tibia or lower leg below the knee. While the belly is usually spotted, it is generally more so on the forward half (in some rare individuals there may be few or no spots). Other species which may be confused with the Eastern American toad are Fowler's toad, which has three or more warts in the largest dark spots, and in the far west of its range Woodhouse's toad.
This species can be difficult to identify. It never has a spotted belly and both cranial crests touch the parotoid glands. In the Eastern American toad these crests almost never touch the parotoid glands, which secrete bufotoxin, a poisonous substance. The poison the toad excretes is mild, but can irritate human skin.[1]
The Eastern American toad may be confused with the Canadian toad in the area where they overlap, but the cranial crests in the American toad do not join to form a raised "boss" (bump) like they do in the Canadian toad. Its range also overlaps with the Southern toad's, but in this species the cranial crests form two unique knobs. Their diet includes crickets, mealworms, worms, ants, and other small insects.
Dwarf American toad
The Dwarf American toad (B. a. charlesmithi), is a smaller version of the American toad which reaches lengths of about 2 1/2 inches and is generally a dark reddish color. The spots on the back are reduced or absent, and when present they contain at most one wart. The ventral surface or belly is usually cream colored with a few dark spots in the breast area. This subspecies can be distinguished from the above mentioned species in the same manner as for the Eastern American toad. The southwestern portion of the Dwarf American toad's range overlaps with that of the Gulf Coast Toad. The latter species is distinguished by the presence of a dark lateral stripe in as well as a deep "valley" between its prominent cranial crests. It eats mainly spiders, worms and small insects.
Hudson Bay toad
The Hudson Bay toad (B. a. copei) is a rare Canadian subspecies of B. americanus.
Gallery
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A toad, approximately one week into adult cycle, shown in comparison to an adult female hand
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Eastern American toad, seen from behind shows characteristic markings and "warts"
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A closeup of the Eastern American toad.
See also
References
- Template:IUCN2006 Database entry includes a range map and justification for why this species is of least concern
External links
- B. americanus at the United States Geological Survey site
- B. americanus at the USDA's Integrated Taxonomic Information System
- [1]
