Toad Says “Hello”

A while back, I wrote about catching a fleeting glimpse of a boreal toad on the Power Point. I mentioned that I’d tried to get a photo of it (see A New Toad Sighting). Not long after that post published, the toad came to us!

On a pleasant, sunny day, all three of us worked outside. We each pursued our own projects, but they all happened to center near the new garden beds we’re establishing in the dooryard near the veranda. Michelle weeded the flower beds in that area, while I hauled firewood, and Aly worked on an art project on the veranda.

Western (boreal) toad in our new garden bed (Photo: Mark A. Zeiger).

Western (boreal) toad in our new garden bed (Photo: Sarah A. Zeiger).

Michelle called us over to see what she found: a toad sat calm and composed on a patch of soft ground between garden beds. It was almost certainly the same one I’d encountered on the rocks just above the beds.

Rather than fleeing as it did before, it stayed put while we approached, discussed it, talked to it, and took photos. We didn’t touch it at all—since our last toad encounters, we’ve learned that human contact risks infecting toads with potentially deadly germs.

It was a pleasant visit (Photo: Mark A. Zeiger).

It was a pleasant visit (Photo: Mark A. Zeiger).

It seemed content to stay long enough that we eventually returned to our work. It relocated in a hurry at one point when Michelle stepped too close. Then, a few minutes later, it disappeared.

At least now we have photos.

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