1925] Storer: A Synopsis of the Amphibia of California 175 
often walk instead of hopping, dragging the heavy hind limbs over 
the surface of the ground so that, on soft dust, the successive imprints 
of the hind feet, with five dots indicating the positions of the blunt- 
tipped toes, are connected by fine surface groovings in the dust. The 
rate of travel of an adult male was tested on one occasion, at night, 
on a lawn. The animal hopped (jumped) readily several times, but 
then settled down and walked, with rapid steps, moving one forefoot 
and the opposite hind foot in unison. After going about 15 feet the 
toad settled down and was reluctant to move farther. When in the 
water, halophilus swims either with the forelegs pressed along the 
sides of the body or else with the forefeet directed forward; in the 
latter case progress is slower. 
Toads, because of their habit of living around human habitations, 
suffer accidents at the hand of man not experienced by other species 
of native amphibians. With the advent of automobile travel many 
of the animals are killed while attempting to cross well traveled road- 
ways. Indeed, toads are becoming scarce in well settled communities, 
largely as a result of automobile travel. With horse-drawn vehicles 
the animals were usually able to escape disaster, but they cannot move 
quickly enough to avoid the motor vehicle. Furthermore, when strong 
headlights are suddenly flashed upon a toad, the animal usually stops 
motionless in the road and is crushed. During the spawning season 
numbers of large adults are killed each year while crossing roadways 
en route to ponds. 
An unusually large number of mutilated toads was discovered on 
a golf course at Altadena, Los Angeles County, in 1923, when the 
writer visited some cement-lined reservoirs there on the night of 
April 8. Following rains during the preceding week, halophilus was 
out in numbers, on the lawns, around the margin of the pools, and 
in the shallow water along the ‘shores.’ There was a regular guard 
of toads spaced at intervals of from 10 to 15 feet around each pool. 
Upon picking up a number of these they were found to be males — 
awaiting the advent of females ready to spawn. Fully 50 per cent of 
these animals were found to possess mutilated limbs. The deficiencies 
ranged from the loss of a few toes to the loss of an entire hind foot 
and tibia up to the ‘knee’; less often a fore limb was abbreviated. 
Only one member was affected on each of the toads seen. Several of 
the cut limbs had been sheared off slantingly in a manner which sug- 
gested that the damage had been done by a lawn mower. The golf 
greens are cut by engine-driven mowers wdiich travel at a rate too 
rapid to permit of a toad getting out of the way. Some cripples were 
