THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



193 



the fingers. They are enormous eaters, taking six or seven good sized worms 

 at a meal. Maggots also form an important part of their diet, and I would 

 advise any one keeping frogs to use this class of food as most economical. 

 Those which the frogs miss in the grub state are secured by them when they 

 re-appear in the perfect form, 



This creature is much more aquatic than Sana temporaria, spending most 

 of its life either in the water or upon the leaves of water plants, on which it 

 may be seen at rest on a warm summer's day. 



I must not omit to mention that it casts its skin after the manner of the 

 other species ; and its winter's repose is also amongst the mud at the bottom 

 of ponds or similar places. 



Bufo vulgaris (Common Toad). 



Perhaps no animal has been more ruthlessly treated than the common 

 toad. Ignorance has been the cause of this cruel oppression. I 

 shall attempt to put this animal in a more favourable position by exhibiting 

 its good qualities. Bad ones it has none, for without exception it is the best 

 friend of man, so far as insects, slugs, &c, are concerned. 



The life history of the toad is much the same as that of the frog ; how- 

 ever, it will be best to watch its development from the embryo to the mature 

 form. The spawn is deposited in long strings, and not in mass, as in the 

 frog's. The spawn presents the appearance of gelatinous strings, which, 

 after being laid an hour, are about J inch diam., this size being due to the 

 absorption of water, as it is only J inch diam., when newly laid. 



The embryos are in pairs, but placed diagonally, giving the appearance of 

 a zig-zag line ; and the strings of spawn are festooned amongst water-plants. 

 You will see it is an easy matter to distinguish between this and the spawn 

 of a frog. The fertilization takes place exactly as in frogs, and the remarks 

 about the males apply with equal force to this species. It is generally asser- 

 ted that toads are more prolific than frogs ; but so far as my observations 

 extend, they contradict this statement. The largest number of eggs which I 

 have seen one female deposit is 1,300 ; whilst in one case the number was 

 Dnly 900 eggs. Taking the average of those which I have observed, I find 

 it to be 1,100. I am inclined to think that the commonly received opinion 

 3f the authors referred to is erroneous, not merely because my figures do not 

 igree with their statements, but aiso because we all know that toads are 

 decidedly less common than frogs, although the latter are very much more 

 Dreyed upon than the former. 



The development of the embryo is similar to that of the frog. The tad- 

 >oles, when hatched out, are T \ths of an inch long, are uniform dark brown, 

 nd differ in shape from those of the frog. The head is more distinctly 



