American Toad (Bufo americanus)

The American Toad and the Fowler's Toad, genus Bufo, are the only two species of true toads found in Kentucky. Their skin is rougher than that of a Spadefoot and their eyes have horizontal pupils. Bufos have a double spade on the bottom of their hind feet, an adaptation for digging into the soil to burry themselves. In the shoulder region is a pair of large parotoid glands

which secrete a poisonous, noxious product if roughly handled. The prolonged (6-30 seconds) musical trill of the American Toad, Bufo americanus, can be heard throughout Kentucky in the early spring and summer. The American Toad is the largest toad in Kentucky ranging from 3 to 4 and a half inches in length, and can be distinguished by possessing only one or two "warts" in each spot and the parotoid gland being separate (or connected by a narrow spur) from the ridge behind the eye. The males call from the edges of shallow ponds, road ruts, surface mine ponds and road side ditches. Eggs are layed in long coiled strings that sink to the bottom of the pool.

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