Backyard Nature: The love song of the American toad

One of the early April performers.

by Marlene Berlin

One day in early April, I was treated to a thrilling duet.

This American toad, from its perch on a Broad Branch stream pond, was calling out for a mate – and getting a response.

I had been walking nearby, lost in thought, when I heard a faint hum. It took me a moment to understand what I was hearing, but it’s a sound I’d waited all winter to hear.

The American toad mating season typically begins in early March, and the hum of their combined voices reaches a crescendo in April. The first time I heard it, I asked my dear departed friend and fellow nature lover, Marjorie Rachlin, what it was. And when she wrote her first of many nature articles for Forest Hills Connection, it was about the American toad.

I frequently head to Broad Branch stream in the evening to hear the great chorus of mating American toads, peepers and tree frogs. They put on quite a show, and I guarantee the kids will love it. Would you like to join me? Email [email protected].

And let us know what you are seeing and hearing.