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Another Toad, with photos and measurements

May 8, 2009 By

So, we were able to finally observe some more American Toads (bufo americanus) in our yard.  Tonight we spotted a medium sized toad hopping along the cement pad in front of our garage door.  I was able to snap a few photos.

Toad #5-2009 Toad #5-2009 Measurement 3

 

 Toad #5-2009 Measurement 1 Toad #5-2009 Measurement 2 

 

 

Toad #5-2009 Making himself small

 

It is a little difficult to see, but he measured just over 2”.  After we put the camera away, we saw another smaller toad, about half the size of this one. I wasn’t able to get any shots of that one.  Both toads were very active.  The number of insects around is still pretty minimal.  The rest of this week it isn’t supposed to be that warm, so this might be our last glimpse of these little guys for a while. 

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Eastern Towhee In the Backyard

April 25, 2009 By

We fed the birds last night and so today was a pretty good birdwatching day.  We also used the last of our thistle seed last night and the last of the sunflower seed, so I’m going to start tracking my seed usage and costs to get a handle on that.  Also, to share that information with people that are interested in beginning to watch birds.  It can get a little expensive sometimes. 

Anyways, today was a great day.  I got the flower bed alongside the red shed cleaned out.  The day lilies are coming up nicely, but I think that I lost my foxglove over the winter.  There were a lot of worms in the bed and I loosened up the soil to get ready to plant some annuals.  Steve cleaned out the gutters on the house and put up the aerial dog tie out. I think that Quincy is really going to like that.  She’ll be able to move about the backyard better. 

After we came inside and were cooking dinner, I saw an unusual visitor to the backyard, an Eastern Towhee.  He was in the flower bed that I had just cleaned out either finding seeds or insects. He came back several times, going between the red shed flower bed and a brush pile just inside of the tree line.  I never saw him do the signature towhee move according to my bird book, the double leg hop or scoot backwards.  I have only ever observed this bird one other time here, and that was last spring.  Maybe they just migrate through this area and don’t really stay. 

We also saw the wounded toad from last night again.  We had put him in the flower bed near the red shed last night, but today he was on the side porch.  Steve set him down in the dirt by the red shed.  I am sure that he is the same toad from last night.  We picked him up to make sure because we could see some marks on the side of his body. 

It has been raining now all afternoon, so later this evening, Quincy and I will have to go out on a toad hunt. We’ve been hearing lots of calling, but have checked every night and not seen any toads, other than our wounded one. Hopefully, I’ll have more to report later.

Filed Under: BirdWatching, Toads Tagged With: ,

Strange Disease or Wound seen on American Toad (bufo americanus)

April 25, 2009 By

So, today, we were outside refilling the bird feeders.  We had kind of let them empty during this week, so all of the birds were “waiting in the wings”.  As we were finishing, Steve spotted a toad that looked as if it had a bum hind leg. It was kind of half buried, right in the soft soil near our bird feeder.  There is pretty thick sod in that area though.  Anyways, after observing the toad for a few moments, he realized that the American Toad seemed to be just emerging from the ground and that his leg was in fact not injured.  He and Quincy watched the toad for a few minutes until I joned them.  We wanted to move him away from the high traffic bird feeding area, so Steve picked him up to move him over by the red shed in the backyard.  When he picked him up we saw that his underbelly seemed to have some kind of skin irritation.  Part of the skin was normal color and normal texture, but a large part of his underbelly seemed to be covered in some sort of rash or lesion.  His lower abdomen seemed discolored, but not protuding from his body as in the other area.  Upon further inspection, we saw that the “lesions” continued all the way up to near his mouth.  We do not know if this was due to an injury of some sort, or if it is some sort of disease. Here are the photos that we were able to take. 

                                    

View from the back.  Looks normal                                         View showing the lesions on the mouth

 View of the underbelly with lesions and discoloration

 

So, for only our second toad spotted this year, this is a disappointment.  Last night we heard American Toad mating calls.  I have such high hopes for the toad research this summer.  I’m hoping that this is the first and last toad we spot in this condition. 

If anyone recognizes this wound, please tell me about it in the comments.  I would like to know more about what could cause the toad to be in this condition.

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On the lookout for American Toads (bufo americanus)

April 16, 2009 By

Well, I’ve been watching the yard for more toads, but so far, none have been out.

I’ve been working on the website.  It may not be apparent, but still doing a lot of learning.  Next up is to post all of our research materials. 

I’ve also been trying very hard to find time to actually get out and watch our wildlife.  Steve has been in charge of birdfeeding the last couple of weeks.  We are still getting a lot of visitors. I’m thinking that next week, we’ll put out the hummingbird and oriole feeders.  I’ve got to find a good deal on some grape jelly for this summer. 

I have been seeing lots of courtship activity amongst the birds, a sure sign of spring.  I haven’t seen the cardinals mate feeding yet though. 

Well, just wanted to check in.  I’ll be blogging again soon!

 

Filed Under: BirdWatching, Spring, Toads

First Toad Spotted

April 2, 2009 By

Steve saw a Medium/Large toad near the corner of the side porch.  It was very nice during the day about 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Steve and Quincy raked pine cones outside.  The toad was buried deeper than 3 inches by the time I got home at 7pm. The temperature was falling. 

Also, the American GoldFinches are starting to turn very yellow.  It is nice to see. 

This winter our pine trees produced an enormous amount of pine cones.  The whole yard was littered with them much more than previous years.  I wonder if it was like that everywhere? 

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Filed Under: Landscaping, Spring, Toads

Summer 2008 Update on the Backyard

July 17, 2008 By

We’ve been seeing a lot of toads, mostly medium and large toads by our crude standards.  We haven’t actually measured any toads.  Sometimes we see as many as 8 to 10 per evening.  Also, this summer Steve rescued a toad from the jaws of a Garter Snake.  He and the dog came across a snake struggling to feast upon one of our toads. The snake seemed to get nervous when Steve and the dog approached and he wasn’t able to finish off the toad.  So, Steve managed to get the toad out of his jaws.  Unfortunately, he didn’t have time to get any pictures of this amazing sight!

Filed Under: Summer, Toads

First Toad Spotted!

April 8, 2008 By

Well, today we spotted our first toad.  It was a “large” toad by our crude standards.  We saw it near the porch on the side of the house.  A certain sign of spring here in Mid-Michigan!  We spotted the toad near dusk. 

Filed Under: Spring, Toads
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