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It's a Friday night at half past seven, but rather than heading to the pub or watching a film, I've caught a train to a town in the countryside to join volunteers from a amphibian rescue group. These dedicated individuals give up their evenings to protect the native amphibian community.

An Alarming Drop in Numbers

The common toad is becoming increasingly rare. A recent study conducted by an wildlife conservation group showed that the UK toad population have dropped by half since the mid-1980s. Observing a creature that has been a fixture of the British countryside in decline is labeled "worrying" by researchers. Toads "don't need very specific conditions" and "should be able to live quite well in the majority of areas in the UK," meaning if even they are struggling to persist, "it indicates that things are not as they should be."

Since 1985, Britain's toad numbers have nearly been cut in half

The Danger from Traffic

Though the study didn't cover the reasons for the decline, traffic is a major factor. Estimates indicate that 20 tonnes of toads are crushed on British roads annually – in other words, several hundred thousand. In contrast to frogs, which would probably be content to mate "with just a small container," toads prefer big bodies of water. Their ability to remain away from water for more time than frogs allows they can journey farther to reach them – often long distances. They usually stick to their traditional paths – it's typical for mature amphibians to return to their birth pond to mate.

Migration Habits

Appropriately enough, the first toads begin their quest for a mate around February 14th, but some move as late as spring, until it gets night and moving after sunset. During that period, toads begin migrating from wherever they have been overwintering "all pretty much at the same time."

One volunteer, who grew up in the area and has been trying to protect its amphibians since he was a child, explains that "Their sole purpose: to go and have an orgy." If their route crosses a street, they could all get run over, and that breeding season would be lost – preventing a next generation of toads from being born.

Toad Patrols Across the UK

Finding many of toad carcasses on nearby streets "inherently strikes a chord with people," and has led to the creation of toad patrols throughout the UK – 274 groups are officially listed with a national initiative. These groups collect toads and carry them over streets in containers, as well as recording the quantity of toads they encounter and lobbying for other safety solutions, such as road closures and underground wildlife tunnels.

Patrols usually work during the migration season, when amphibian movements are frequent. However, this means they can overlook groups of toadlets, which, having been spawn and then juveniles, leave their water habitats over an unpredictable schedule in late summer. Because of their small stature – just a couple of cm wide – "they can get obliterated by vehicles." And as being run over "essentially crushes them," it's harder to collect information on them. At least when mature amphibians are killed, their carcasses can be tallied.

Annual Work

Unlike many groups, one local team, who are in their eighth season of functioning, go out year-round – not nightly, but whenever conditions are warm and wet, or if someone has reported about a toad sighting in their messaging app. When I request to accompany them on duty, they admit it is "not ideal conditions" – toad hibernation season has begun and it's been a arid period – but several of the helpers gamely agree to walk up and down their route with me and see what we can find. "Should anyone can find any toads tonight, that pair will find one," says the patrol manager, pointing to her 14-year-old son and the experienced member. We've been out for two hours without a glimpse of any amphibians, and now they have climbed over a wire barrier to check under some logs.

Family Involvement

The family duo joined the group a while back. The youngster adores all things wildlife and has an goal to become a environmentalist, so his parent started to search for things they could do jointly to help native animals. Now she loves it as much as he does, the middle-aged small business owner tells me – so when the team was seeking a new manager lately, she decided to step up.

The teenager, too, has played an important role in the organization. A video he created, imploring the local council to block a street through a nature reserve during migration season, influenced the outcome the team's way. After a year of lobbying, the council approved an "access-only" rule between 5pm and 5am from February through to spring. Most drivers duly avoided the road.

Other Wildlife and Challenges

Several vehicles go by when I'm out on duty and we find some victims as a consequence – no amphibians, but three squashed newts. We spot one living newt as well, and the teenager is especially excited to see a daddy longlegs, which dances in his hands. Yet in spite of the group's best efforts to let me see a toad, the local population has obviously settled down for the winter. It seems that I couldn't have found any better success anywhere else in the country – all the patrol groups I contact clarify that it's very difficult at this season.

They project rescuing nearly 10,000 grown amphibians during migration

A message I get from a different helper, who has generously taken the trouble to check for toads in a famous site, considered the largest accurately monitored toad group in the UK, reaches me with the subject line: "None found." However, in February and March, he informs me, the group expects to help approximately ten thousand adult toads across the road.

Effectiveness and Challenges

How much of a difference can these groups truly achieve? "The fact that people are doing this regularly on cold, damp and unpleasant late nights is quite extraordinary," says an researcher. "This effort that very much deserves recognition." However, while rescue teams are able to slow the decline, they cannot prevent it entirely – not least because traffic is just one danger.

Other Dangers

The global warming has resulted in extended spells of drought, which create the poor environment for some of the creatures that toads consume, such as worms and slugs, while higher water temperatures have led to an increase of blue-green algae, which can be harmful to toads. Milder winters also lead toads to emerge from their hibernation more often, disrupting the energy conservation crucial to their existence. Loss of environment – especially the disappearance of big water bodies – is another menace.

Experts are "always a bit worried about putting too much of a utilitarian spin on biodiversity," however "It's important in just their presence." But toads play an significant part in the ecosystem, eating almost any small creatures or small animals they can fit in their mouths and in turn feeding a number of birds and mammals, such as hedgehogs and otters. Improving situations for toads – ie building water habitats, conserving woodland and installing amphibian passages – "benefits for a whole bunch of other species."

Historical Importance

An additional motive to work to preserve toads around is their "historical significance," adds an specialist. Myths and folklore around toads date back {centuries|hundred