Nature Note: The Eastern Spadefoot Toad
By Missy Toncray and Joe Settles

This little guy is somewhat of an enigma to herpetologists (snake and frog hunters)! Unlike the “true toads”, eastern spadefoot toads have short snouts; relatively smooth skin, teeth in the upper jaw, and no parotoid glands. Notice anything else different about him? Look at his eyes - the pupils are vertical and the “true toads” have horizontal ones!!!!

Another distinction the spadefoot claims is the sickle-shaped spade on his back feet. These sharp-edged black spades allow the spadefoot to burrow down into his favorite habitat - loose, sandy soils. If you’re still having a little trouble identifying him, you can also look for two light lines on his back that resemble a misshapen hourglass. But count your lucky stars if you ever get to see one of these awesome creatures! They are pretty secretive most of the year, only coming above ground in large numbers to breed in the spring.

When most people think about a toad, the first thing that comes to mind are warts. The myth states that if you handle a toad, you are going to get warts. NOT TRUE!!! Warts are passed from person to person from a type of virus called the human papillomavirus (HPV). However, some people after handling a spadefoot have been known to have an allergic reaction and sneeze their heads off! So just be careful to wash your hands after picking one up.

Okay, on to more serious stuff – reproduction. Spadefoots are explosive breeders and breeding takes place primarily in the spring (sometimes fall). They deposit their eggs in shallow, temporary pools. Females will lay 2000 – 5000 eggs, and the tadpoles will develop in 2 – 8 weeks. Development is dependent upon how fast those pools dry up and the temperature of the water.

So if you’re out on your 4-wheeler and you see an awesome road rut just calling your name, stop and think about all the little tadpoles trying to make it in this world. If you ever get to see an adult spadefoot, tell everyone how cool you are because you could identify it. Happy toad hunting!

Missy Toncray and Joe Settles are biologists for Kentucky’s Touchstone Energy Cooperatives