Eastern American Toads (mating pair)

Many mating pairs of Eastern American Toads (Anaxyrus americanus) were spotted in a vernal pool during a photowalk along the Hike-Bike Trail at Huntley Meadows Park on 11 March 2016. This pair is shown in amplexus, in which the male (top) holds onto the female (bottom): the female lays eggs in the water; the male fertilizes the eggs, externally from the female.

Notice the black-and-white strings of toad eggs in the water.

The eggs are laid in long spiral gelatinous strings and each egg is 1/25 to 1/16 inch in diameter. The eggs, 4000 to 8000 in number, are laid in two strings, and hatch in 3 to 12 days. Source Credit: eastern American toad (Anaxyrus americanus americanus), Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

Related Resources:

• “Air bag” deployed
• Amplexus
• Amplexus gone wild!
• “Toad-ally in love!” — a five-part series of posts featuring two types of toads commonly seen at Huntley Meadows Park: Eastern American Toads (Anaxyrus americanus); and Fowler’s Toads (Anaxyrus fowleri).

Copyright © 2016 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.

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Tags: adult female, adult male, amplexus, Anaxyrus americanus, Eastern American Toad, Hike-Bike Trail, Huntley Meadows Park, mating pair, vernal pool, wetlands, wildlife photography