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SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXII. No. 818 



erable interest has been aroused in the toads 

 of the eastern United States. Mr. A. H. 

 AUard, in two articles in Science, September 

 20, 1907, and November 6, 1908, has shown 

 that, instead of being a very local race, as was 

 supposed until quite recently. Fowler's toad 

 is a widely distributed species found from 

 northern Georgia to southern New England. 

 During the past four summers the writers 

 have been collecting and studying toads in the 

 state of New Jersey and neighboring regions, 

 and now feel able to make some statement as 

 to the range of Bufo americanus and B. fow- 

 leri in that area. 



At the outset of our investigations it was 

 found that only one species, readily identified 

 as Fowler's toad, occurred about our homes 

 at Plainfield, N. J., and Staten Island, N. T., 

 as well as in the pine barrens of southern 

 New Jersey. Later Bufo americanus was 

 taken in Sullivan Co., N. T., and afterwards 

 by Mr. W. T. Davis in the mountains of 

 northern New Jersey, where we have since 

 found both Fowler's toad and the " Ameri- 

 can " toad living together, as they do in south- 

 ern New England. 



The characters which distinguish the two 

 species are more apparent in living than in 

 preserved examples, and are subject to con- 

 siderable variation. The best difference is the 

 relative wartiness of the skin, Bufo ameri- 

 canus being very much rougher, having much 

 larger and more prominent warts oh its dor- 

 sal surface, and especially on the hind legs, 

 than Bufo fowleri. The presence or absence 

 of spots on the breast is not an absolutely re- 

 liable guide, for we have found occasional 

 specimens of Fowler's toads with a few faint 

 spots, in addition to the usual median mark 

 between the throat and breast; and examples 

 of the American toad, with immaculate under- 

 parts are not uncommon. The general color 

 of the belly of B. fowleri is grayish white, 

 while that of B. americanus is a much buiEer 

 shade. The back of the former is ordinarily 

 grayish, and that of the latter greenish or 

 brown, often yellowish-olive or reddish. The 

 American toad seems to attain a greater size 



than Fowler's toad, the head and body of a 

 female specimen collected by Mr. Dwight 

 Franklin in Pike County, Pa., measuring 10 

 centimeters in length. The iris of Bufo 

 americanus is bronze in color, and that of B. 

 fowleri silvery. It is our opinion that live 

 Fowler toads have a much stronger odor, like 

 that of ailanthus wood, than do American' 

 toads. 



In the " Frog Book " Miss Dickerson states 

 that Bufo fowleri has longer and slenderer legs. 

 Our measurements show no appreciable aver- 

 age difference in the length of the legs, so that 

 the apparent shortness of the American toads' 

 legs is evidently due to their greater fleshi- 

 ness, and more extensive webs. 



While we do not agree with Mr. Allard in 

 calling the song of Fowler's toad a " scream " 

 or " wail," it certainly has much less music to 

 it than the trill of the American toad. The 

 notes are more closely connected, so that a 

 sort of buzzing is produced. 



The range of Fowler's toad has already been: 

 outlined by Mr. Allard as extending from 

 New England to northern Georgia. It is 

 found throughout the whole state of New 

 Jersey, except possibly in the extreme north- 

 west corner. South and east, it replaces B. 

 americanus entirely, so that throughout south- 

 ern and central New Jersey, as well as on 

 Staten Island, there is only one kind of toad. 

 All the toads we have been able to procure on 

 Long Island have also belonged to the south- 

 ern species, so that the American toad is prob" 

 ably not found there. 



Bufo americanus is found together with B. 

 fowleri in the mountainous portion of the 

 state, and down the Palisades of the Hudson 

 at least as far as Grantwood, opposite the 

 upper part of Manhattan Island. We have ai 

 considerable series of examples collected at 

 Newton, Newfoundland, Budd's Lake, Engle- 

 wood and Grantwood. This toad is also found 

 in numbers at Van Cortlandt Park, in the 

 Borough of the Bronx, New York City, but 

 we have found no typical examples, as yet, on 

 Manhattan Island. Like many other northern 

 animals, it extends its range down the Alle- 

 ghenies, as is shown by two specimens sent to 



