A Toad resting
Image details
Contributor:
TomsPhotos / Alamy Stock PhotoImage ID:
EECKH1File size:
57.3 MB (1.8 MB Compressed download)Releases:
Model - no | Property - noDo I need a release?Dimensions:
5480 x 3653 px | 46.4 x 30.9 cm | 18.3 x 12.2 inches | 300dpiDate taken:
25 March 2011Location:
Woodland walesMore information:
The common toad can reach about 15 cm (6 in) in length. Females are normally stouter than males and southern specimens tend to be larger than northern ones. The head is broad with a wide mouth below the terminal snout which has two small nostrils. There are no teeth. The bulbous, protruding eyes have yellow or copper coloured irises and horizontal slit-shaped pupils. Just behind the eyes are two bulging regions, the paratoid glands, which are positioned obliquely. They contain a noxious substance, bufotoxin, which is used to deter potential predators. The head joins the body without a noticeable neck and there is no external vocal sac. The body is broad and squat and positioned close to the ground. The fore limbs are short with the toes of the fore feet turning inwards. At breeding time, the male develops nuptial pads on the first three fingers. He uses these to grasp the female when mating. The hind legs are short relative to other frogs' legs and the hind feet have long, unwebbed toes. There is no tail. The skin is dry and covered with small wart-like lumps. The colour is a fairly uniform shade of brown, olive-brown or greyish-brown, sometimes partly blotched or banded with a darker shade. The common toad tends to be sexually dimorphic with the females being browner and the males greyer.[16] The underside is a dirty white speckled with grey and black patches