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It is a Friday night at 7:30, but rather than going out or relaxing at home, I've taken a train to a town in the countryside to join volunteers from a toad patrol. These committed people sacrifice their nights to protect the local toad population.

An Alarming Decline in Population

The common toad is becoming increasingly uncommon. A recent study conducted by an amphibian and reptile charity revealed that the UK toad population have almost halved since 1985. Observing a species that has been a fixture of the UK landscape in decline is described as "concerning" by experts. Toads "don't need very particular environments" and "should be able to live successfully in the majority of areas in Britain," meaning if even they are not managing to survive, "it kind of suggests that things are not as they should be."

The UK toad population has almost halved since 1985

The Danger from Roads

Though the research didn't cover the causes for the decline, cars certainly plays a part. Estimates suggest that 20 tons of toads are killed on UK roads every year – that is, several hundred thousand. Unlike frogs, which would probably be happy to mate "with just a small container," toads prefer big bodies of water. Their ability to remain away from water for more time than frogs allows they can travel further to reach them – often hundreds of metres. They tend to stick to their ancestral migration routes – it's common for adult toads to return to their natal pond to mate.

Migration Habits

Fittingly, the initial amphibians begin their quest for a partner around February 14th, but some move as late as spring, until it gets dark and travelling after sunset. During that time, toads start moving from wherever they have been hibernating "almost simultaneously."

One volunteer, who was raised in the area and has been trying to protect its toad population since he was a child, explains that "Their sole purpose: to go and have an orgy." If their path happens to a street, they could all get run over, and that breeding season would never happen – stopping a new generation of toads from being born.

Toad Patrols Across the UK

Seeing hundreds of dead toads on nearby streets "inherently strikes a chord with people," and has led to the formation of toad patrols across the UK – 274 groups are currently registered with a countrywide program. These groups pick up toads and carry them over streets in buckets, as well as recording the quantity of toads they find and advocating for other safety solutions, such as road closures and underground wildlife tunnels.

Patrols usually work during the migration season, when toad crossings are frequent. However, this means they can miss groups of young toads, which, having been eggs and then juveniles, leave their water habitats over an unpredictable schedule in the end of summer. Because of their size – just a couple of cm wide – "they are destroyed by vehicles." And as being hit "basically turns them into mush," it's more difficult to get data on them. At least when adult toads are lost, their remains can be counted.

Annual Efforts

In contrast to many groups, a specific volunteer group, who are in their eighth year of functioning, go out year-round – not nightly, but whenever weather are damp, or if someone has reported about a toad sighting in their messaging app. When I request to accompany them on patrol, they concede it is "not ideal conditions" – winter dormancy has begun and it's been a arid period – but a few of the volunteers willingly accept to walk up and down their area with me and search for any toads. "Should anyone can locate any toads tonight, that pair will spot one," says the group coordinator, indicating her 14-year-old son and the experienced member. After for two hours without a single toad sighting, and now they have scaled a wire barrier to inspect beneath some logs.

Family Involvement

The mother and son joined the group a year and a half ago. The youngster loves all things wildlife and has an ambition to become a environmentalist, so his mother started to look for things they could do together to help native animals. Now she loves it as much as he does, the 41-year-old entrepreneur explains – so when the group was looking for a fresh coordinator recently, she volunteered for the role.

The teenager, too, has played an important role in the group. A clip he created, imploring the municipal authority to block a road through a protected area during migration season, swung the decision the team's way. After a year of lobbying, the authority approved an "restricted access" restriction between 5pm and 5am from February through to April. The majority of motorists duly avoided the route.

Other Wildlife and Difficulties

A few vehicles go by when I'm out on duty and we discover some casualties as a result – no amphibians, but three squashed newts. We see one live amphibian as well, and the teenager is particularly pleased to see a daddy longlegs, which dances in his palms. Yet in spite of the group's hardest attempts to let me see a toad, the native community has obviously settled down for the winter. It seems that I wouldn't have had any better success elsewhere in the country – all the patrol groups I reach out to explain that it's very difficult at this season.

The group expects to help approximately 10,000 adult toads across the road

A message I receive from a different helper, who has kindly made the effort to check for toads in a famous site, considered the largest accurately monitored toad population in the UK, reaches me with the subject line: "No toads." However, in late winter, he tells me, the group expects to help approximately 10,000 mature amphibians over the street.

Effectiveness and Limitations

How much of a difference can these groups actually make? "The reality that people are performing this consistently on chilly, wet and miserable evenings is remarkable," notes an expert. "That's something that very much should be celebrated." However, while rescue teams are able to slow the decline, they cannot prevent it entirely – not least because vehicles is not the only threat.

Other Dangers

The climate crisis has meant longer periods of drought, which create the poor environment for some of the animals that toads eat, such as worms and slugs, while warmer ponds have led to an increase of blue-green algae, which can be toxic to toads. Milder winters also lead toads to emerge from their hibernation more frequently, disrupting the energy conservation vital to their life cycle. Loss of environment – especially the disappearance of big water bodies – is an additional threat.

Experts are "always a bit worried about putting too much of a utilitarian spin on biodiversity," but "There is a big value in just having these animals around." But toads play an important role in the food chain, consuming pretty much any small creatures or tiny organisms they can fit in their mouths and in turn feeding a number of birds and mammals, such as wildlife. Enhancing conditions for toads – such as building water habitats, protecting forests and constructing toad tunnels – "we'll improve them for a wide range of additional wildlife."

Cultural Significance

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