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Natterjack toad found kent-sussex border

Printed From: Reptiles and Amphibians of the UK
Category: Herpetofauna Native to the UK
Forum Name: Natterjack Toad
Forum Description: Forum for all issues concerning Bufo calamita
URL: http://www.herpetofauna.co.uk/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=323
Printed Date: 28 Mar 2024 at 5:50pm
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 11.06 - http://www.webwizforums.com


Topic: Natterjack toad found kent-sussex border
Posted By: lauriek
Subject: Natterjack toad found kent-sussex border
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 3:37pm

Hi,

A few nights ago I was on a slug-killing mission in the garden and I found a toad on the patio. At the time I didn't realise there was anything special about it but I took a few photo's anyway as I am trying to put together a photographic catalogue of the wildlife we have out there..

Anyway, a couple of days after the actual encounter I was looking through a wildlife book and realised that this was not a common toad and was in fact an adult Natterjack Toad, which I had heard of but never seen before.

I haven't been able to find out much about them except that they are rare and endangered (and limited to a few locations in the UK, which I cannot find a list of anywhere), and they like open chalkland, near the sea. Well I live in Wadhurst, which is about 30 miles from the coast, it doesn't seem chalky and its fairly well wooded around here.

My questions are:

(a) is this a known location where these beasties have been found before?

(b) should I notify anyone that I found one here?

(c) would anyone be interested in some photo's or a couple of video's I took of it?

Cheers!

Laurie

(Cross posted to Natterjack toad forum from UK reptiles and amphibians forum as I realised this was a better place for the post!)

 



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Laurie Knight



Replies:
Posted By: -LAF
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 5:10pm
Hi Laurie, I should say thatif you can post a picture on these forums it should generate a lot of interest, just to confirm the id. I don't know if there is a known site near you but the number of known inland sites is very small. There were certainly historic records from nr Maidstone, which isn't too far from you.

Cheers, Lee.

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Lee Fairclough


Posted By: administrator
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 7:42pm

Hi Laurie,

 If the pictures are digital you can mail them to me at the address at the top of the page and I will place them in this thread.



Posted By: lauriek
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 8:31pm

Hiya, I am just emailing the pictures into the forum, they should be with the moderator in 10-15 minutes..

Interesting comments from David, I used to be in the scouts myself and did actually go on a scout camp on Ashdown forest, but never saw any interesting toads then, I suppose that would have been about the early 1980's..

I should point out that I've only made one sighting so far and was lucky to have the camera handy, so I don't think I'm sitting on a huge population pocket. Does anyone know how far these little beasties are likely to wander from their breeding grounds?

Hope the pictures help. I have two (fairly crappy) 3-4mb mov videos I took at the same time if anyone is interested, they show it hopping and running along.

Cheers!

    Laurie



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Laurie Knight


Posted By: lauriek
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 9:12pm

Doubts?!

I hope I am wrong but looking at the pictures on this site it is not clear to me now that this is a Natterjack as none of my photo's show the yellow line.

I could be the victim of a poor wildlife book - which going by their pictures and comments I identified the beast by. I apologise profusely for causing any undue excitement if this is the case! <embarrased shuffle> But hopefully my pics should be with the forum administrator now who should be better able than me to tell what it was!

<fingers crossed hoping not to look like a complete idiot! />

Thought it only fair to mention it as it came to me!

Laurie



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Laurie Knight


Posted By: administrator
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 9:13pm

Laurie's Pictures,

 

 

 

 

I selected 3 images from those you sent Laurie that give clear distinguishing features between the Common Toad Bufo bufo and the Natterjack Bufo calamita, the first image shows the parotoid glands diverge lateraly towards the back of the animal, the second that there is no clearly defined vertebral stripe, I'm always willing to be proven totally wrong, but I would say this is a Common Toad

Take a look on the RAUK ID pages for the animals concerned for descriptions and comparison photographs.

http://www.herpetofauna.co.uk/natterjack_toad.htm

http://www.herpetofauna.co.uk/common_toad.htm

Thanks for sending the images, they are lovely photographs of the UK amphibian I like the most



Posted By: lauriek
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 9:20pm

Doh, I feel a right plonker now!

Would it be possible for you to edit the article heading and add NOT to the end of it to save getting anyone else unnecessarily excited please!

I think it's only fair to mention that I used Collins "Complete British wildlife" to (wrongly it seems) identify this toad as I do not have any amphibian specific books. I now realise that I should have come here first!!

Cheers and sorry to anyone reading this thread who feels I wasted your time!

Laurie

Non toad expert 2003



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Laurie Knight


Posted By: -LAF
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 9:21pm
Hi Lauriek, I agree with Gemma that this is definately a common toad, and a rather handsome animal indeed. Fab hindleg markings. Your description of it hopping confirms this identity (natterjacks run but don't hop). I would say that he (or she) was doing the same thing as you that night, and controlling the slugs, they're great things to have in the garden!

Cheers, Lee.

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Lee Fairclough


Posted By: lauriek
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 9:26pm

David,

You are absolutely right, and I will now have to go out of my way to spot a real one somewhere! ;)

  Laurie

 



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Laurie Knight


Posted By: administrator
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2003 at 10:36pm

Hi Laurie,

I can change the posting if you really want, but personally think that it illustrates the differences between the 2 species very well and might be very helpful to someone else in the future to identify the animals, I miss-identified what is probably the most commonly kept pet snake species in the world the other week.. just a case that I've not kept them or had an interest in that particular species, but they bare superficial resemblance to a European species I have kept - most important thing must be that you were interested enough to find out more which is why the forum is here! 



Posted By: william shaw
Date Posted: 02 Sep 2003 at 3:46pm

Hi Laurie - just read all the correspondence/seen the (excellent) photos re your non-natterjack sighting!!

All good stuff.  Just one other point, for future reference, about the differnces between common and natterjack toads;  natterjacks have yellow irises, commons orange.  A very noticeable feature.

All the best, keep on searching.



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777


Posted By: Paul
Date Posted: 29 May 2004 at 10:44pm
Hi Laurie, just so you dont feel so stupid, i've dug up my copy of the complete british wildlife book by collins and the picture on page 133 looks exactly like yours except for the lateral line, the other thing is the common toad is shown as a olive-brown colouration which is the common colour. If you read the info on the Natterjack Toad it says: Body rather flattened with conspicuous yellow strpie down back. Persoanlly i'm not sure if your toad is a common or natterjack toad - it could be the angle ofthe photo missed the stripe, but the toad is quite flat...


Posted By: Paul
Date Posted: 29 May 2004 at 10:48pm
actually, a second viewing of the pictures shows that the toad's eyes are orange, a common toad's eyes are usually always orange around the edges while a Natterjack's are usually Yellow.


Posted By: ANDREW CLARKE
Date Posted: 20 Jul 2004 at 11:21pm
Dear Members,

I am no expert but from reading your site I suspect I may have a frog/toad of some sort in my garden. Last night at approx 5am-6.30am I was awoken by a series of high pitched calls/whistling which I cannot identify with any birdsong or other fauna like sound I have heard before.
This experience has coincided with 2 individual sightings, one by myself and one by my partner of a frog/toad (we're not sure which). Since we have never heard this sound before our first assumption is that the sound and the amphibian are linked. Is this likely?

Many thanks

Kate and Andrew

Battersea, London

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aclarke1@mac.com


Posted By: Brian
Date Posted: 02 Mar 2009 at 4:38pm
Another post I am coming late to! I am the EN natterjack man that Dave Bird referred to. I don't recall being told by my wife about the Sussex/Kent natterjack record in 2003! Dave, the site in Sussex you referred to (scout camp) may have been Broadstone Warren in Ashdown Forest. it is a centre owned and used by the Scouts. I surveyed the area in the late 1980's and found all five of the widespread amphibians. Common toads were abundant. The site is largely forested in tall pine and looks most un-natterjacky now.

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BB


Posted By: Alex2
Date Posted: 03 Mar 2009 at 4:17pm

Originally posted by ANDREW CLARKE ANDREW CLARKE wrote:

Dear Members,

I am no expert but from reading your site I suspect I may have a frog/toad of some sort in my garden. Last night at approx 5am-6.30am I was awoken by a series of high pitched calls/whistling which I cannot identify with any birdsong or other fauna like sound I have heard before.
This experience has coincided with 2 individual sightings, one by myself and one by my partner of a frog/toad (we're not sure which). Since we have never heard this sound before our first assumption is that the sound and the amphibian are linked. Is this likely?

Many thanks

Kate and Andrew

Battersea, London

Alytes obstetricans?




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