Evening star., 1923-10-12

| population. Now they are largely
confined to the Woodbridge district,
their last haven.
! Adult toads are nocturnal creatures
holes in search of food. Automobile
| lights over the smooth street sur
| faces attract them. They hop toward
these as moths to a lamp and are
crushed by following machines.
Thousands Die On Roads.
I Especially in springtime. Mr.. Kel-
| logg says, 1t Is possible to find the
crushed bodies of toad after toad
ed in this fashion each year.
Another factor in the high NOR
! tality rate of the amphibians is the
practice of burning over lawns and
fields. They are killed in their holes.
says. he will be sorely missed in Dis
trict gardens. He is one Of the most
persistent enemies Of insect pests. He
has no bad habits of his own IL left
J alone.
! The biological survey has just COM
pleted a thorough study of toad
| habits and life history. They are
long-lived creatures. Every creatures
hand is raised against them. yet some
| have been known to live for thirty
specimens that reached the ripe old
age Of 200, but these are smiled at
J by scientists here. A toad can exist
for over a year sealed up inside q
block of limestone. They can live for
months without anything to eat Il
; the temperature is kept low enough
Have Poison Defense.
| They have one protection--a milky,
poisonous fluid which they can ex-
| against most animals. but not against
snakes or birds. Skunks have been
| known to eat them. Before doing SO.
however. they roll them around
renshy poson Sh sas as besn al shs
rubbed OFF. A dog may bite a toad
once. The experience usually proves
SO disaEreeable that he will not try
1t q second time. The secretion Is
an acrid M irritant: producing ,s a very
| The common toad found about Dis
| trict gardens Is not very poisonous.
Some species In other parts Of Nerth
America are SO venomous that In
dians formerly used their secretions
| to poison arrow heads. The same poi
| son Is used by dealers to produce
| yellow feathers on the Amazon green
| parrots. The blue and green feath-
ers Of the head and neck are plucked
out. Then these parts are rubbed
| with the body Of living toad. When
| the feathers grow out again they are
| of yellowish tint. The toad venom
is never fatal to humans unless In
| troduced into the circulatory system.
! The District toad. however. Is not
guilty of many Of the mfsdemeanors
ascribed to him by the superstitious.
| He doesn't bring warts on the hands
| Of small boys. He doesn't make cows
give bloody milk. He doesn't bring
rain when turned on his back. He
doesn't have any virtue as medi-
cine.
During the winter toads hibernate
In the ground. In the District they
come to the surface sometimes In
March. With the first cold evenings
the creature starts its hurrow. II
digs with it's hind legs and always
the dirt fills in over its. head. II. it
fails to burrow below the frost line
It is sure to perish, but Il sometimes
Is able to dig lower as the frost level
comes nearer. During the summer
they habitually avoid the sunshine.
All day they conceal themselves In
holes and crevices.
The species Of toads found in the
District are land creatures. In GER
tain seasons, however. they can be
found in or near shallow streams or
puddies. It will not eat dead food.
Only moving objects make any i'm
Once motion is perceived, the am
lphibian will refuse nothing that prom
ises to fill its stomach. A toads
tongue IL attached to the front of its
mouth and Is free behind.
It is thus especially adapted for
fiinging forward to capture insects.
Frequently objects are accidentally
swallowed which have no food value.
Small boys have fed toads with burn