TOADS AND FROGS 



reasons why a toad is seldom in a hurry, for 

 he is well aware that though there are many 

 creatures which will eat his relative the frog 

 with pleasure, there is not one that looks upon 

 him with favour. For another thing, he is a 

 fat, squat, portly old fellow, not fitted for 

 racing about, so he does not worry himself, 

 and when disturbed waddles calmly off to 

 find another snug hole in which to hide until 

 nightfall. It is only when some bird or beast 

 makes a mistake and pounces on him that the 

 toad makes use of his defence. He never 

 ejects the fluid except as a last resort— for 

 instance, when hurt or very badly frightened, 

 and one can handle him without any risk of 

 unpleasant consequences. In any case it is 

 not strong enough to hurt our hands, it only 

 being unpleasant in the mouth, and so on. 

 It certainly makes him a nasty mouthful for a 

 dog, fox, owl, or cat ; and if one of these crea- 

 tures pounces on a toad in mistake for a frog, 

 it drops it quicker than it picked it up, and no 

 doubt makes a note in its mind to avoid toads 

 for the future. I once offered a small toad to 

 a young brown owl. The bird took it at once, 

 gave the poor thing a pinch, then dropped it 

 hastily, and, turning round, began to wipe its 



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