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Common toads have warty skin.

Reptiles and Amphibians - The Common Toad

The common toad is a familiar British amphibian with warty skin and slow, steady movements. Discover its life cycle, habitats, and clever defences, then try the quiz.

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Fascinating Fact

In spring, many toads migrate to breeding ponds, and you may see them crossing roads on mild, wet nights.

The common toad is an amphibian, which means it can live on land and in water at different stages of its life. It begins as eggs in jelly-like strings, hatches into tadpoles, and then changes into a young toad as it grows lungs and legs. Adults often hide in damp, sheltered places, and they may produce a mild toxin to discourage predators.

Key Terms

Amphibian: A cold-blooded animal that usually starts life in water and later develops features for living on land.
Metamorphosis: A major change in body form during growth, such as a tadpole developing legs and lungs.
Parotoid glands: Glands behind a toad’s eyes that can release a toxin to help protect it from predators.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is the difference between a frog and a toad?

Frogs usually have smoother skin and longer legs for jumping, while toads tend to have drier, bumpier skin and shorter legs for walking. Both are amphibians, and there are exceptions.

What do common toads eat?

Common toads mainly eat invertebrates such as worms, slugs, snails, and insects. They usually hunt at night, using quick tongue movements to catch prey.

Where do common toads live in the UK?

Common toads live in many parts of the UK, especially gardens, woodlands, and rough grassland with nearby water. They like cool, damp shelter such as logs, stones, and dense vegetation.

Try These Related Quizzes

1 .

Female common toads lay their spawn (eggs) in:

Clumps

Double strings

Single strings

Individual eggs

Their spawn comes in long, jelly-like strings, which contain a double row of eggs

2 .

Why do common toads have bumps (glands) located just behind their eyes?

To produce a chemical that attracts other toads

It helps them attract prey

To produce a toxin so that predators will not eat them

It's just a part of their skin and has no special function

A way common toads deter predators is by making themselves not taste very nice, they do this by producing a toxin from glands on their heads called the parotoid glands

3 .

Scientists think the common toad has declined in the UK by what percentage, over the last 30 years?

28%

48%

68%

88%

Froglife recently published a study, along with colleagues from Switzerland, that showed toad populations in the UK are declining. The data was gathered by volunteer toad patrollers. To read more about this research head over to the Froglife’s latest news pages

4 .

What is a common toad's preferred way of getting around?

Crawling

Rolling

Hopping

Running

When people think about frogs and toads they imagine them hopping. This is true for frogs, however, toads prefer to crawl as they have shorter legs

5 .

Common toads have what type of skin?

Smooth

Scaly

Sticky

Warty

There is an old tale that, if you pick up a toad, you’ll get warts from its warty skin - this is, however, totally false

6 .

Common toad tadpoles are what colour?

Dark brown or black

Yellow

Blue

Red

7 .

When a common toad tadpole starts developing into a toadlet, what happens first?

They grow front legs

They lose their tail

They develop back legs

All of the above happen at the same time

When common toad tadpoles start going through metamorphosis and start developing into a toadlet, they go through an amazing transformation and become a small version of an adult toad. This all starts with tadpoles developing back legs

8 .

Where do common toads spend the winter?

Buried down in mud

In compost heaps

Amongst dead wood

Any of the above

Common toads don’t hibernate throughout all of winter - they will take advantage of warmer days and will emerge to eat. They like to spend winter in areas where they will be protected from predators, so anywhere they can hide makes a good place

9 .

Adult common toads are:

Carnivores (only eat other animals)

Herbivores (only eat plants)

Omnivores (eat other animals and plants)

Filter feeders (‘sift’ food particles from the water)

Adult common toads only eat other animals, such as insects, slugs and spiders

10 .

How long does it take for a common toad egg to become a tadpole?

2 – 4 days

2 – 4 weeks

6 – 8 weeks

2 – 4 months

There are lots of cool things happening inside a common toad egg while it develops into a tadpole. The whole process takes around 14 – 28 days, depending on the weather and environmental conditions while it develops

Author: Graeme Haw

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