A Home for Toads

Toad Abode Toad Pit

Toads are fascinating and beneficial animals to have around. In Ohio, we have two species of toads – the American toad and the Fowler’s toad. The American toad is the most prevalent and the one more likely found in your yard.

Contrary to popular belief, toads do not give you warts, but if picked up or harassed by a potential predator, they may secrete a white toxic liquid to keep them from being eaten. Consequently, only a few types of snakes, raccoons, and skunks can stomach a toad. Besides natural predators, toads are sometimes run over or stepped on by humans.

Toads are mostly active at night and on cloudy days. At other times, they stay in burrows underground. They will sometimes hide underneath a clay flower pot – a “toad abode.” You can make a toad abode by propping up one side of an overturned terra cotta flowerpot with a few rocks creating a space for the toad to enter the pot. You can also make a toad abode by carefully breaking out a small opening on one side of the rim of the pot to form an entrance. (Try decorating your toad abode with ceramic paint or markers that are specifically designed for terra cotta.)

You can also provide a cool place for a toad on a hot summer day with a “toad pit.”

What you will need…

• Two pieces of clay or corrugated drainage pipe, 4-inch diameter (Ask an adult to help you find these)
• Sand (about two cups)
• Flat rock or piece of wood 1 to 1.5 feet in diameter
• Rocks of various sizes

Pick a sheltered area in your yard and dig a pit about 8 inches deep, 1 to 1.5 feet in diameter. Place the two pieces of pipe coming from the pit at a 30 degree angle. Pour the sand in the middle of the pit. Fill in around the pipe with dirt and cover the hole with a large flat rock or piece of wood. Then place the assortment of rocks around the cover. The two pipes allow the toad to escape if a potential predator should enter the toad pit.



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