Alamance Co., NC
9 July 2006
Common in the piedmont and mountain regions of NC, this species is very similar to Fowler's Toad. American Toads are distinguished from Fowler's Toads by a couple of ways:
1. Generally Americans have only one or two large warts in the big black blotches on the back, whereas Fowler's have 3 or more.
2. In Americans, the parotoid gland (long oval bump behind the eye) does not touch or just barely touches the ridge behind the eye, sometimes connected by a spur. (In Fowler's they touch for a significant length.)
Even after looking at these characters, they can be an ID challenge!
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American Toad (Bufo americanus) Alamance Co., NC 9 July 2006 |
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American Toad (Bufo americanus) Alamance Co., NC 9 July 2006 |
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American Toad (Bufo americanus) Chatham Co., NC 20 Oct 2005 |
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American Toad (Bufo americanus) Orange Co., NC 1 Apr 2007 |
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American Toad (Bufo americanus) Orange Co., NC 30 May 2008 |
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| Eno River State Park, Orange Co., NC 28 May 2003 | same individual |
Created on ... June 29, 2003 | Updated on ... April 27, 2007 | jspippen@duke.edu