American Toad (Bufo americanus)

The American Toad is the most common toad in North America, so chances are, if you see a toad, it is the American.

The American Toad grows to be two to three inches long and can be found in and around wetlands in the spring (during mating season) and just about everywhere else during summer and fall. During mating season, the male toad does a mating call early in the morning and throughout the day. Each mating call last up to thirty seconds.

When people hear chirping sounds in marshes, they may assume it is crickets. But if it is spring, it is more likely a toad.

Most American Toads are "Eastern American Toads". There is, however, a subspecies of toad known as the "Dwarf American Toad" that lives in Oklahoma and Arkansas. This subspecies is, of course, smaller than the Eastern variety, and so doesn't grow much larger than two inches long.

The American Toad lays its eggs in two strings and the young hatch in one or two weeks. Toad tadpoles are easily recognized as different from frog tadpoles because they have skinny tails in relation to the rest of their bodies. Toad tadpoles grow to adulthood in around 40 days. Until that time, they must stay in water. After reaching adulthood, they primarily stay away from water, except for the return during mating seasons.

The toad eats insects, worms, grubs and snails. The American Toad's primary defense is staying out of sight. In addition, while it is not poisonous (as some exotic toad/frog species are) the skin on its back tastes extremely bitter. Therefore many predators, such as raccoons, will simply flip the toad over and eat the underside of the toad, leaving the back of the toad untouched.

In the wintertime, toads bury themselves in soil to get below the frost-line. They do this in easily dug, sandy soils and will dig as deep as needed to avoid frost. The colder the winter, the deeper the toad will dig.

A commonly-told myth about toads is that you can get warts from them. Warts on toad skins are a natural formation, not a virus or disease that can be communicated to others.

Wood Frog - Rana sylvatica

The Wood Frog is a mostly brown little frog about two or three inches long. It's often the first frog heard calling for mates in the spring.

The Wood Frog lives in forests and brush not far from wetlands, lakeshores, ponds, etc. It is known to travel a considerable distance from its watery breeding grounds.

The Wood Frog is one of the most widely scattered amphibian in North America. Its range extends far into Canada, even as far north as the Arctic Circle.

One of the most amazing facts about the Wood Frog is that it survives over winter, in spite of being frozen solid. The Wood Frog will spend winter under a small cover of leaves or debris. World-wide, there are only a few species of vertebrates that can survive winter with tissues freezing in this way. It enables the Wood Frog to inhabit many northern areas and also range farther from bodies of water than other frogs.

Another amazing fact about the Wood Frog is that it can mature from egg to small frog in less than 50 days. For this reason, many classrooms use Wood Frogs as teaching subjects so students can observe the growth of the frog in a relative short period of time.