Welcoming Wildlife to Your Property

Whether a small lot or many acres, there are ways you can welcome wildlife to your property for their benefit and your enjoyment!

Toads

Ode to a Toad... 
Unlike a frog she is not a swimmer
Though she may want a refreshing soak with her dinner.
As she sits in her hole
And peers out like a mole
Out flicks her tongue
To catch flies, mosquitos, moths, slugs
And other garden thugs.
Then, in a most ladylike fashion,
She wipes at her face and emits a trill or a peep
Before hunkering down for a short day time sleep.

​Poem by Penny Bollin, Urban Conservation Technician for Lucas SWCD

Toads, a benefit to your yard and garden!

Who doesn’t like a toad all lumpy and bumpy with a chronic look of bemusement on its face? It makes you wonder what they are thinking! But, did you know, aside from being a source of amusement, toads can benefit your garden and your yard?

​Here are a few facts about toads to get us started:
  • Toads are amphibians, not reptiles
  • Oxygen can pass through their skin
  • They are bio-indicators and therefore, help show overall health of your garden
  • When threatened, toads give off a secretion that is irritating to mucus membranes 
  • They need water (be it a body of water or an area high in moisture) to reproduce
  • They readily absorb toxins through their skin
  • The two toads found in Ohio are the Fowler’s Toad and the Eastern American Toad
  • Toads overwinter in the soil below the frost-line
  •  Adult toads are carnivores and can, according to the ODNR Amphibians of Ohio Field Guide, eat 10,000 “harmful insects” in a season!
Let’s look at that last fact: they can eat 10,000 insects in a season. Or as another article indicated, up to 100 per day.  Now I didn’t do the math to see if these two bits of information add up, but in either case, that is a lot of insects!  And that, my friends, is why you may want to create a "toad abode" for your amphibian friends in your garden.
Picture

Attracting Toads
Toads need areas of shelter with water, a food source, some shade, and no pesticide use. Native plants are some of the better plants to have for your toads as they attract many of the insects that the toads are adapted to.  However, toads aren’t all that picky about their snails, grubs, and caterpillars.  Wood or brush piles are another good area to have as shelter.  And, a water source is mandatory.  Make sure the edges of the container are not too tall or they won’t be able to get in or out.  You could use rocks and branches as steps for your toads. And don’t forget to keep it filled. Be careful with your mower and shovel.  If you can have an area near your water and where they mainly live, try not to mow or dig or you could wreak havoc on your toad population.

You can also build a toad shelter. They can be as simple as an upside down broken clay pot, as long as the break is big enough for them to enter and exit.  Or, you could construct something out of wood, clay or even an old ceramic/clay pot that you have lying around -- cut a door into it or prop up on some stones. Add color. Be creative! As long as you have met the above criteria, toads should move in!

Check out these examples of Toad Homes! Example 1    Example 2    Example 3

Dog Owners: A Word of Caution!
If you have gotten this far in this article, you are probably interested in toads and hopefully attracting toads to your garden and yard.  However, like all things, there are a few cautions to keep in mind:
  • If your dog picks up a toad in his/her mouth, he could start salivating, gagging, and possibly vomiting due to the toad’s glandular secretions. If this happens, according to the ASPCA, if your dog is conscious, carefully rinse his mouth (5-10 minutes) with a hose and his mouth facing downward (so the secretions go out and not in) and call your vet. On the positive side, “most toads in the United States are only mildly toxic”.
  • According to the same article, the truly life-threatening toads such as the Cane toad and the Colorado River toad, live in one or more of the following states: Arizona (southern), New Mexico, California, Florida, (southern) Texas, and Hawaii
  • Prevention, in either case, is best: keep an eye on your dog and don’t build your toad home/water source in an area where your dog can access it (the toad's secretions could persist in the water).
  • I have personally witnessed dogs after they have had an Ohio toad in their mouth and, though the symptoms appear alarming, they did readily recover
For more on this, visit the ASPCA website. 

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View/Download a printable version of this article.
Questions? Contact Penny Bollin, Urban Conservation Technician 
Email: PBollin@co.lucas.oh.us
Phone: (419) 893-1966 ext. 5# or (419) 377-0065