Careful while you’re crossing that toad!
Toadwatch patrol at Cranwich on the bus A134. From left: Ellen Spain, Donna Stocking (front), Zoe Ager and Holly Sandford.
HAVING grown up in East Anglia I am used to driving on rural roads which has made me very aware of wildlife.
Ever since I passed my test I have seen muntjac deer, plenty of rabbits and pheasants.
I have seen a few warning signs for toads in the past but have never seriously thought about looking out for the animals.
But after I was invited to join West Norfolk’s only Toadwatch group on a night patrol I learned how important those signs are.
The group was set up at the start of this year by Donna Stocking, of Furlong Road, Stoke Ferry, who is also involved in tortoise rescue.
Toadwatch has 30 volunteers, aged between 17 and 70, and patrols take place in Oxborough, Cockley Cley and Cranwich.
Since the group started 3,507 toads have been saved by its dedicated members.
Mrs Stocking, 42, who works as a part-time teaching assistant at Northwold’s Norman Primary School, decided to create her own Toadwatch organisation after thousands of toads were killed on the A134 at Cranwich last year.
She said: “I wanted to do something about it. I couldn’t drive in that area because I was so upset. The aim is for every village to start up a patrol.”
Toads spend most of the year up to three miles away from their breeding ponds and live in woodland away from water.
During March, males and females return to the pond where they were born in order to breed. Immediately afterwards they return to their natural habitat while the toadspawn takes between seven and 12 weeks to hatch.
Volunteers of the Toadwatch group have so far carried out 13 patrols and the aim is to split up and move the animals off the road in the direction they are facing.
On their busiest night so far, February 25, the wildlife enthusiasts moved 444 toads in Oxborough, 1,024 in Cranwich and 837 in Cockley Cley.
“There were puddles everywhere and we were soaked. We were there for three hours but could have stayed out all night. Everybody was buzzing – we were on such a high,” Mrs Stocking said.
On the night I went out with the group it had been raining during the day, which was good news because toads like to come out when it is dark, cloudy, wet and above nine degrees Celcius.
The volunteers were optimistic because even though it was a clear night the temperature was just right.
Even before we arrived at the crossing in Oxborough a young female was making its way across the road, which I picked up and put in a nearby field.
The creature did not feel damp, which I expected, and it felt slightly spongy.
I did not know much about toads before I went out that night but the most interesting thing I learned was that they walk and frogs hop.
Toads can also live for up to 21 years and only start breeding when they are four-years-old.
Other differences between these amphibians include; toads are bumpy, frogs are smooth, toads can travel over large areas and frogs stay near ponds, toadspawn grows in a rows and frogspawn grows in a clump.
We were looking for Bufo bufo toads, also known as common toads.
By the time we had reached Cockley Cley there was sad news that a number of toads had been killed on the A134 at Cranwich.
The heavy rainfall earlier in the afternoon had encouraged the toads to walk across the busy road. Unfortunately, only 24 were moved in one hour in that area but it was a different story at Cockley Cley where 105 were saved.
Soon after we arrived one toad had a lucky escape after Mrs Stocking ran across the road to pick it up, just before three cars drove past at speed.
She said: “When the group gets volunteers who are willing to help I think I’m not the only mad person who wants to do this, but some people don’t understand why I put my life at risk in order to save a toad.
“Nature has taught the male toads that they will find a female in open spaces but nature hasn’t told them about cars on the road.
“It is good fun when we are all out in a group and doing something worthwhile. When you see a dead toad it is hard so it is nice to save one.”
After spending an hour with the Toadwatch group I realised it is not just about helping toads across the road, there is also a strong social side to the organisation.
It was nice spending time outdoors and I felt I was really helping boost West Norfolk’s wildlife.
Picking up the toads felt a bit strange but for the sqeamish people like me gloves are available.
Following my experience with the Toadwatch group I’ve become a lot more cautious when driving on country roads at night and hopefully many toads will be saved because of that.
For more information about the group contact Donna Stocking on 07876324231.
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Weather for King's Lynn
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 26 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
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Temperature: 10 C to 24 C
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