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[title size=”2″]American Toad[/title]

The American toad or hop toad, as it is sometimes called, is an adaptive toad found all over North America. It can live in any area containing a permanent or semi-permanent body of water where it can lay its eggs. This allows it to live in areas of the Ozarks near freshwater but also in suburban and rural areas as well. American toads are identified by their short and stout body and legs. They can be told apart from large frogs by their thick and warty skin. Interestingly, the skin of American toads is warty due to the presence of numerous glands that produce a milky toxic substance that, when released, covers the toad’s body to protect it from predators. The poison is only harmful if it reaches a membrane such as ingestion through the mouth or contact with the eyes. The warts are colored a bright red or yellow to warn predators, and are located on top of the toad’s brownish skin. The skin color of the toad actually changes based on temperature, stress level, and humidity. This gives it a range of hues from yellow to brown and black. The American toad has 4 toes on each front foot and 5 on each hind foot, all connected with webbing to assist in its amphibious lifestyle. They grow to 2 to 4 inches large and have black eyes with a gold circle around the edges.

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Anaxyrus americanus or Bufo americanus

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