The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1873-09-12
The Toad.
Some Interesting Facts About Hia HnoitH'
Paper Read Before tho American science
Association by Thomas HILL

The Toad.
some Interesting Facts About Hia Habits.
Paper Read Before tho American science
Association by Thomas HILL
No. "a. "Note on Bufo Americanus. "
| This note is intended as a contribution
toward the psychology of the American
| toad, simply presenting some evidences
of intelligence and Of capacity for learn
ing to which have been witness. In
the summers of 1885 an old toad used
| TO sit under the door of n beehive,
every fine evening, and dexterously PICK
up those bees who, over-lRden or tired,
missed the doorstep and fell TO the
! ground. He lost, by some accident, an
| eye, and 10 was observed by some mem
! bers of the family as well as myself
! that he had with il lost the ability to
pick up a bee at the first trial, his
tongue struck the gravel one side the
bee but after several weeks practice
with one eve, he regained his old GER
tainty of aim. have never seen our
toad raise his hands TO crowd his food
into his mouth, rs the European tCads
do, although he uses them freely TO
wipe out of his mouth any lnedible or
disagreeable substance. When our
toad gets into his mouth part OF an IN
sect too large for his tongue 70 thrust
down his throat (and 1 have known OF
their attempting a wounded humming.
bird) he resorts 10 the nearest stone and
presses the protrudinP part OF hls
mouthful against it, and thus crowds it
down his throat. This can be observed
at any time by tying n locusts hind
legs together and throwing it before
small toad. On one occasion L gave
vellow-striped locust 60 little toad IN
it's second summer, when he was IN the
middle of very wide gravel walk. In
a moment he had the locust's head down
his throat, its hinder parts protruding,
and started for stone or clod but
finding none at hand in either direction,
he lowered his head aud crep along,
pushing the locust against the ground.
But the angle with the ground was too
small, and my walk too well rolled. To
increase the angle he Strengthened his
hind legs up, but in VAIN. Az length
he threw no his headquarters and actu-
ally stood on his head, or rather on the
locust sticking out of bis mouth, ana
after repeating this once or twice sue
ceeded in getting himself outside OF his
dinner.
But these instances Of ingenious
AuHDINllOn
exceeded by n four-year-old toad at An
tioch COLLEGE. / was tossing live earth
worms while digging, and presently
threw him 50 large specimen that he
was Obliged to attack one end only
That end was instantly transferred to
his stomach. the other end writhing
free in air, and coiled about the toad.s
head. He waited until the worms
writings gave him chance, swallowed
half an inch. then, taking AMP with his
laws, waited for a chance 10 draw IN
another half-inch. But there were so
many half-inches to dispose OF that at
length his Jaws grew tired, lost their
firmness of grip, and the worm crawled
ont five-eiChths of an inch between each
haIf-inch swallowing. The toad, per-
ceiving this, brought his right hand to
aid his laws, grasping his abdomen with
his foot, and by little effort getting
hold of the worm i'm his stomach from
the outside, he thus 10y his foot held
fast TO what he gained 10y each swallow,
and presently succeeded in getting the
worm entirely down. A garter snake
was observed, this summer, IN North
Conway. pushing toad down his throat
bv running it against clods and stones,
inst as the toad crowds down locust.
The amount which II toad can eat is sur
prising. Tuesday morning, threw
TO a young toad. He snap
pe 1 il up, but Immediately rejected II,
wiped his mouth with great energy, and
then hoped away with extraordinary
rapidity. ( was so much amused that
gathered some of the same bugs, and
carried them 10 a favorite old toad at the
northeast corner of the house. He ate
them all without making any faces. !
gathered all that / could find on my
vines. and he ate them all To the num-
ber of %. then brought him some
Larvae pygaera ministra three-quarterS
grown, and succeeded in enticing him To
put 81 of them on top Of his squash
bugs. Finding that his virtue was not
proof against the caterpillars when ]
put them on the end of n straw, and
fickled his nose with them, he at length
turned and crept under the piazza,
where he remained until Friday after
noon, digestin0 his feast.