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It's a Friday night at 7:30, but instead of heading to the pub or watching a film, I've caught a train to a town in Wiltshire to meet up with volunteers from a toad patrol. These dedicated individuals give up their evenings to protect the local toad population.

A Worrying Drop in Numbers

The common toad is becoming increasingly rare. A latest research led by an wildlife conservation group revealed that the UK toad population have dropped by half since 1985. Seeing a creature that has been a fixture of the British countryside in decrease is described as "worrying" by experts. Toads "don't need very particular environments" and "should be able to live successfully in most of areas in Britain," so if even they are not managing to survive, "it kind of suggests that things are not as they should be."

The UK toad population has almost halved since 1985

The Threat from Traffic

Though the study didn't cover the reasons for the decline, traffic certainly plays a part. Estimates indicate that 20 tons of toads are crushed on British roads every year – that is, hundreds of thousands. Unlike frogs, which might be happy to mate "if you left out a bucket of water," toads prefer large ponds. Their capacity to remain away from water for longer than frogs allows they can journey farther to find them – sometimes hundreds of metres. They usually stick to their ancestral migration routes – it's typical for adult toads to go back to their natal pond to mate.

Breeding Habits

Fittingly, the first toads start their journey for a partner around Valentine's day, but some move as late as spring, waiting until it gets dark and moving through the night. During that time, toads start moving from wherever they have been hibernating "almost simultaneously."

One volunteer, who grew up in the region and has been working to save its toad population since he was a child, notes that "They've got just one focus: to go and mate." If their route happens to a road, they could all get run over, and that mating period would be lost – preventing a new generation of toads from being produced.

Toad Patrols Across the United Kingdom

Seeing many of dead toads on local roads "resonates deeply with people," and has led to the creation of toad patrols throughout the UK – hundreds of organizations are currently registered with a countrywide program. These teams pick up toads and carry them across roads in containers, as well as recording the number of toads they encounter and advocating for other safety solutions, such as blocked roads and underground wildlife tunnels.

Volunteers usually work during the migration season, when amphibian movements are frequent. However, this means they can miss groups of young toads, which, having been eggs and then tadpoles, leave their water habitats over an unpredictable schedule in the end of summer. Because of their size – just one or two centimetres wide – "they are destroyed by vehicles." And as being hit "essentially crushes them," it's harder to collect information on them. At least when adult toads are lost, their remains can be counted.

Annual Efforts

Unlike many groups, one local team, who are in their eighth season of functioning, go out throughout the year – not every night, but whenever conditions are damp, or if someone has reported about a amphibian spotting in their group chat. When I ask to join them on patrol, they admit it is "not a toady night" – toad hibernation season has started and it's been a dry day – but several of the helpers gamely agree to walk up and down their area with me and see what we can find. "If anyone can find any toads tonight, those two will spot one," says the patrol manager, indicating her teenage child and the experienced member. After for 120 minutes without a single toad sighting, and now they have scaled a wire barrier to check under some logs.

Community Participation

The mother and son joined the group a year and a half ago. The teenager adores all things wildlife and has an ambition to become a conservationist, so his mother started to search for things they could do jointly to protect local wildlife. Now she loves it as much as he does, the 41-year-old entrepreneur explains – so when the team was looking for a new manager recently, she volunteered for the role.

The teenager, too, has played an important role in the group. A video he made, imploring the local council to block a road through a protected area during breeding time, influenced the outcome the team's way. After a twelve months of campaigning, the council approved an "restricted access" restriction between 5pm and 5am from February through to April. The majority of motorists duly avoided the road.

Other Wildlife and Difficulties

Several cars go past when I'm out on duty and we find some casualties as a result – no toads, but several crushed salamanders. We spot one living newt as well, and the youngster is particularly pleased to see a harvestman, which dances in his palms. Yet in spite of the team's hardest attempts to let me see a toad, the local population has clearly gone dormant for the winter. It seems that I wouldn't have had any more luck elsewhere in the country – all the rescue teams I contact clarify that it's near-impossible at this time of year.

They project rescuing nearly 10,000 grown amphibians during migration

A message I get from another volunteer, who has generously made the effort to check for toads in a noted location, considered the largest accurately monitored toad population in the UK, arrives in my inbox with the title: "None found." However, in February and March, he informs me, the group expects to help around 10,000 adult toads over the street.

Effectiveness and Challenges

What level of impact can these groups actually make? "The fact that people are performing this consistently on chilly, wet and miserable late nights is remarkable," notes an expert. "That's something that very much deserves recognition." However, while toad patrols are able to slow the decline, they cannot prevent it entirely – not least because vehicles is not the only threat.

Additional Threats

The climate crisis has meant extended spells of drought, which cause the wrong conditions for some of the creatures that toads consume, such as invertebrates, while warmer ponds have caused an increase of toxic plants, which can be harmful to toads. Milder winters also lead toads to emerge from their hibernation more frequently, disrupting the resource preservation crucial to their existence. Loss of environment – especially the disappearance of big water bodies – is an additional threat.

Researchers are "always a bit worried about putting too much of a utilitarian spin on wildlife," but "There is a big value in just their presence." But toads play an important role in the food chain, consuming pretty much any invertebrates or small animals they can fit in their mouths and in turn feeding a variety of birds and mammals, such as wildlife. Improving conditions for toads – ie creating more ponds, protecting forests and installing toad tunnels – "we'll improve them for a wide range of additional wildlife."

Historical Importance

An additional motive to try to keep toads present is their "historical significance," notes an specialist. Myths and folklore around toads date back {centuries|hundred