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It is Friday evening at half past seven, but instead of going out 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 sacrifice their evenings to protect the native amphibian community.

An Alarming Decline in Numbers

The Bufo bufo is growing more uncommon. A latest study led by an amphibian and reptile charity revealed that the British common toad numbers have almost halved since 1985. Observing a creature that has been a stalwart of the British countryside in decrease is labeled "concerning" by researchers. Toads "don't require very particular environments" and "should be able to live successfully in most of areas in the UK," meaning if even they are not managing to survive, "it kind of suggests that the ecosystem is unbalanced."

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

The Danger from Traffic

Though the research didn't cover the reasons for the drop, traffic certainly plays a part. Estimates indicate that 20 tonnes of toads are crushed on British roads annually – in other words, several hundred thousand. Unlike frogs, which would probably be happy to mate "with just a bucket of water," toads prefer big bodies of water. Their capacity to remain away from water for more time than frogs allows they can travel further to find them – sometimes long distances. They tend to follow their ancestral migration routes – it's common for adult toads to go back to their birth pond to mate.

Migration Habits

Fittingly, the first toads start their journey for a partner around February 14th, but others travel as far as April, until it gets dark and travelling through the night. During that time, toads begin migrating from wherever they have been overwintering "all pretty much at the same time."

One volunteer, who grew up in the region and has been working to save its amphibians since he was a boy, explains that "Their sole purpose: to go and have an orgy." If their path happens to a road, they could be killed by traffic, and that mating period would be lost – preventing a new generation of toads from being born.

Rescue Groups Throughout the UK

Seeing hundreds of toad carcasses on nearby streets "resonates deeply with people," and has led to the creation of toad patrols throughout the UK – hundreds of organizations are currently registered with a national initiative. These teams pick up toads and carry them across roads in buckets, as well as counting the number of toads they find and lobbying for other safety solutions, such as blocked roads and amphibian passages.

Volunteers usually work during the migration season, when toad crossings are frequent. However, this means they can miss numbers of toadlets, which, having been eggs and then tadpoles, leave their ponds over an unpredictable schedule in the end of 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 more difficult to collect information on them. At least when adult toads are killed, their remains can be tallied.

Year-Round Efforts

In contrast to many groups, a specific volunteer group, who are in their eighth season of operating, go out throughout the year – not nightly, but whenever conditions are warm and wet, or if a member has posted about a amphibian spotting in their group chat. When I ask to join them on patrol, they admit it is "not ideal conditions" – winter dormancy has started and it's been a arid period – but several of the volunteers willingly accept to walk up and down their area with me and see what we can find. "If anyone can find any toads tonight, that pair will spot one," says the group coordinator, pointing to her 14-year-old son and the longtime volunteer. We've been out for 120 minutes without a glimpse of any amphibians, and now they have climbed over a wire barrier to check under some wood.

Community Involvement

The family duo became part of the patrol a while back. The youngster adores all things nature-related and has an goal to become a conservationist, so his parent started to look for activities they could do jointly to protect native animals. Now she enjoys it as much as he does, the 41-year-old entrepreneur tells me – so when the team was seeking a fresh coordinator recently, she decided to step up.

The teenager, too, has played an important role in the organization. A video he made, imploring the local council to close a street through a protected area during breeding time, swung the decision the group's way. After a twelve months of lobbying, the authority agreed to an "restricted access" rule between 5pm and 5am from February through to April. Most drivers duly avoided the route.

Additional Species and Challenges

Several vehicles go by when I'm out on patrol and we find some casualties as a result – no amphibians, but three squashed newts. We see one live amphibian as well, and the youngster is especially excited to see a daddy longlegs, which moves in his hands. Yet in spite of the team's best efforts to show me a toad, the native community has obviously settled down for the colder months. It seems that I couldn't have found any more luck anywhere else in the country – all the patrol groups I contact explain that it's near-impossible at this time of year.

This team anticipates assisting around ten thousand mature toads over the street

One email I get from another volunteer, who has generously taken the trouble to look for toads in a famous site, considered the largest accurately monitored toad population in the UK, reaches me with the title: "No toads." However, in late winter, he informs me, the team expects to help around ten thousand adult toads over the street.

Impact and Limitations

How much of a difference can these groups actually make? "The fact that people are doing this regularly on cold, damp and unpleasant evenings is remarkable," says an researcher. "This effort that very much deserves recognition." However, while toad patrols are able to slow the decline, they can't stop it completely – not least because traffic is not the only threat.

Additional Threats

The global warming has resulted in extended spells of dry weather, which cause the poor environment for some of the animals that toads eat, such as invertebrates, while warmer ponds have caused an increase of blue-green algae, which can be harmful to toads. Milder winters also cause toads to wake up from their hibernation more often, disrupting the energy conservation vital to their existence. Habitat destruction – particularly the loss of large ponds – is an additional threat.

Experts are "often concerned about putting too much of a utilitarian spin on biodiversity," however "There is a big value in just their presence." But toads do have an important role in the food chain, eating almost any invertebrates or small animals they can swallow and in turn sustaining a number of predators, such as wildlife. Improving conditions for toads – such as creating more ponds, protecting forests and constructing toad tunnels – "benefits for a whole bunch of additional wildlife."

Historical Importance

Another reason to work to preserve toads around is their "important cultural value," notes an expert. Legends and tales around toads go back {centuries|hundred