Black toad
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Black toad | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservation status | ||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Bufo exsul Myers, 1942 |
||||||||||||||
| Synonyms | ||||||||||||||
|
Anaxyrus exsul |
The black toad (Bufo exsul), also known as the Deep Springs black toad, lives only in scattered oases in the Deep Springs Valley of Inyo County, California. In fact, its scientific name Bufo exsul means "exiled toad," which refers to its species' isolation in a tiny spot in the high desert wilderness of the Great Basin.
The toad's black skin is covered in white and tan speckles and it sports a white midline down its spine from head to rump. Adults are approximately 5 cm (2 inches) in length. They are active during the warmer months and overwinter underground near their native springs. This species walks rather than hops, and never strays far from water.
The habitat of the black toad is relatively intact, however it is still considered a threatened species because of its isolation and low numbers, and ongoing threats from livestock management. Deep Springs College continues a program to care for the wild population of this species, and owns much of the land where its habitat is found. Livestock have been recognized as a threat to the species since the mid-1970s and recent evidence indicates that trampling may be skewing the sexual demographic of the population. Livestock degradation of the water source may also be related to the decreasing size of adult toads found in the most recent survey. There is contrary evidence that livestock remove vegetation which benefits the toad, but given the species persistence for thousands of years prior to livestock introduction, it is doubtful that the black toad depends on heavy grazing in its environment.
Though abundant within its habitat, the species has one of the most limited ranges and smallest number of individuals of any amphibian species.
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Hammerson (2004). Bufo exsul. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes a range map, a brief justification of why this species is vulnerable, and the criteria used
[edit] References
- Pauly, G. B., D. M. Hillis, and D. C. Cannatella. (2004) The history of a Nearctic colonization: Molecular phylogenetics and biogeography of the Nearctic toads (Bufo). Evolution 58: 2517–2535.[[Black Toad Band] http://www.myspace.com/needeepband]
