Woodhouse+Toad

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// Bufo woodhousii // Order: Anura

=**__Husbandry Information__**=

Notes on Enrichment & Training


=__Programmatic Information__=

Tips on Handling

 * Handle with wet hands.
 * Grasp firmly with shoulders encircled with thumb and index finger, belly flat on your palm.
 * Woodhouse's toads are powerful jumpers so care needs to be taken to ensure the toad does not have enough purchase with its back feet to escape.

Potential Messaging

 * These toads can consume up to 2/3 of their body weight in insects daily. This makes them a useful predator for farmers who can support toad habitat by maintaining playas on their land throughout the Great Plains.
 * General amphibian messaging.

=__Acquisition Information__= Generally only available as wild caught specimens.

=__Comments from the Rating System__=
 * Lee Richardson Zoo: We allow small audiences to touch this animal with wet fingers, and have never seen any negative effects.

=__Natural History Information__=

Range and Habitat
Isolated colonies can be found throughout the Great Plains and Rocky Mountain regions of North America. Prefers lowland sandy areas but will inhabit a variety of areas including marshes, river bottoms, mountain canyons, desert streams, irrigated areas and urban and suburban yards.

Physical Description
Vary from gray or greenish-gray to brown with irregular and elongated brown or dark gray-green spots. Woodhouse's Toads have a light colored mid-dorsal stripe and a light colored belly with no spots. Range in length from 2 1/2" to 4", females are generally larger than breeding males. Fingers and toes are moderately webbed. Rounded snout, enlarged kidney-shaped glands on back behind each eye and easily visible tympanum. The skin is fairly dry with a warty appearance.

Life Cycle
Captive individuals have lived more than 13 years.

Behavior
Primarily nocturnal though young adults are more likely to be active during the day. Dew and condensation provide enough moisture, allowing these toads to live a largely terrestrial life, only returning to water to breed.

Threats and Conservation Status
=__Did you know…__=

=__Photographs__=

=__Contributors and Citations__=
 * Lee Richardson Zoo

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 * //Activity Schedule: diurnal, nocturnal, crepuscular//
 * //Continent of Origin//
 * //Diet Requirements: carnivore, herbivore, omnivore, etc.//
 * //General Habitat/Biome: deserts, forests, mountains, etc.//