29 



to return to their winter-quarters, with the result that the breeding- 

 season is broken up into two or three periods within a couple of 

 months. When the first appearance of mild weather is much 

 retarded, the spawning takes place for all individuals within a very- 

 few days, with an enseiiMe which is not customary for the species in 

 our uncertain climate. 



" The Natterjack Toad does not undertake lengthy migrations for 

 the purpose of depositing its eggs. It usually lives in colonies in 

 sandy localitie.'s, such as dunes on the sea-coast, sand-quarries, 

 heath-land, etc., which must be in close proximity to at least some 

 sort of shallow pool, even of an intermittent kind. This toad shows 

 not the slightest discrimination in the choice of water, and will not 

 move any distance in search of better conditions if only it can find 

 close b)' a little water in side ditches or even in cart-ruts of a road, 

 whilst an excellent pond may be available a hundred yards oft'. The 

 development of the eggs and larvae, it is true, is much more rapid 

 than that of earlier breeders like the Common Frog and the Common 

 Toad, but nevertheless, in some places, a great many broods are 

 destroyed through want of foresight on the part of the mother. 

 Should, however, the pools or ponds in which the Natterjack is 

 accustomed to breed, and around which it has settled, disappear for 

 good, by the agency of man or otherwise, the whole colony will 

 move off after a time to a more suitable locality. This I have 

 observed in sand-quarries in Belgium and France, some of which 

 are provided with stagnant water whilst others are not ; those which 

 have no water or from which the water has disappeared for a year 

 or two, are without Natterjacks at all times of the year, thus show- 

 ing that this gregarious Batrachian only settles down in such places 

 as will afibrd a site for spawning within a few yards, whilst half a 

 mile's journey is nothing to a Common Toad. It may also be 

 mentioned that the Natterjack, in common with the Palmated 

 Newt, has no objection to brackish water and is therefore often 

 found in great abundance in close proximity to the sea. The 

 greatest number I have ever seen was on the little He de Bast, 

 opposite Roscoff, on which, for the reason that the pools are 

 brackish, neither frogs nor the common toad exist. 



" The Natterjack has no such restricted breeding-season as our 

 other Tailless Batrachians. The females do not go to the water 

 until ready to spawn, and the time at which the ova descend into 

 the oviducts varies according to individuals, from between the 

 middle of April to the beginning of July, sometimes even later. 



',' The Common Toad, on the other hand, is remarkable for the 

 fixity in the time at which it seeks the water for the purpose of 

 reproduction and for the shortness of the period within which all 

 the females get rid of their eggs. Exceptions of later breeders, 

 which have been observed, are so rare they may well be said to 

 confirm the rule. The same may be said of isolated pairs occasionally 

 found in places to which toads are not in the habit of resorting to 

 breed. 



