Natterjack Toad

Natterjack Toad, common name for a small stocky European toad that can grow to a length of 10 cm (4 in), but is usually smaller. It has short hind legs on which it scampers rather than hops. It is usually olive green in colouring with a thin, pale yellow stripe running down the centre of the back. It is found throughout western and central Europe. One of two toads native to the British Isles, it is easily distinguished from the much larger and less colourful common toad (Bufo bufo). The natterjack toad requires warm shallow ponds in sandy, sometimes dune, habitats to breed successfully. As a result its distribution is more restricted than that of the more temperature-tolerant common toad, and its breeding season begins later. It is noted for its loud, booming mating call.

During the last century, habitat disturbance and pollution has severely restricted the natterjack toad's distribution within the British Isles and it is now found only in localized areas of southern, south-eastern, and north-western England and in the south-west of Ireland.

A number of conservation organizations are currently cooperating to halt the decline of the species by implementing habitat reclamation and protection and captive-breeding programmes. Captive-bred toads have been released at several carefully chosen and intensively monitored sites.

Scientific classification: Natterjack toads belong to the genus Bufo in the family Bufonidae. The natterjack toad is classified as Bufo calamita.