Adults feed primarily on ground beetles, although they have been known to eat smaller toads and ants. The toad then rests in the depression and scans the surrounding area for movement. When prey is detected B. houstonensis leaps forwards and takes the prey into its mouth. Reproduction Breeding occurs between the end of January and the end of June, but peaks in late February. Early breeding often begins when the prior 24-hour period's temperature has not fallen below 14 degrees C. Mating occurs at night near shallow pools of water or ponds.
Males begin their mating calls twenty minutes before sunset while still in their burrows.
After ten minutes they begin moving toward a breeding pond, arriving between sunset and midnight. Once there, they seek elevated places from which to call. This call consists of a long high pitched trill. The first females begin arriving several hours after sunset. Once a female has selected a mate, the male remains clasped to the female for at least six hours.