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Toads,
Hop, hop, what is a Toad ?
What makes a Toad different from a frog ?
Only it's bumps! It's true.
Toads and frogs got thier names long ago
only because they were very smooth or bumpy.
That made the scientists go nuts because Some frogs have been found that are bumpy and some mountain Toads are smooth. Scientists have had to find other ways to tell the differences. One thing that they discovered is that toads don't always live near water and in fact some toads live in the driest deserts far away from water and these toads only come to water when they breed and lay eggs. (Amphibians)
Most Frogs live very close to water and do not tend to travel too far from it.
Toads come in many sizes and shapes.
Some toads live in the Rain forests of South America and the people there watch out for them because they have big mouths that could bite your toes. Crunch !
Some are just very big like the Colorado river toads that can eat just about anything that they can catch, even a mouse.
I once had a Toad that liked to eat dog food from the dog's food dish, munch, munch.
My dog did not like the toad eating all of his dog chow!
Toads eat a lot of food and live for up to ten years.
Toads make fun pets that can learn to eat worms right from your finger tips. Yummy!
But, you must always wash your hands after handling Frogs and Toads because their wet skin can make your skin itchy. The reason for this is that the frogs have a "mucous" that protects their skin from becoming too
dry. Toads have glands behind their necks that can produce a milky slime that makes them taste bad to
an animal that might try to eat them. Yuck!
A Hopping good way to teach kids about nature!
Go to the library and read about it !
From your Friends at Tanks Alot reptile Shop.
(c) 1991
Don Petty
