A GROUP of volunteers from Basingstoke have taken up a special mission to help frogs and toads cross busy roads as part of a national campaign to save them from disappearing.

The toad patrolling group from Basingstoke, which is part of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Amphibian and Reptile Group, is helping toads to cross busy roads like Cufaude Lane and Wildmoor Lane and reach their breeding ponds.

With spring arriving and the weather turning milder, volunteers from Basingstoke are gearing up to visit the site over the next weeks and carry toads and frogs over the busy road to help them reach their breeding ponds on the other side.

The group is also looking to recruit more volunteers before it starts warming up and the amphibians start moving. 

The common toad – a wonderfully charming amphibian with ’warty’ skin and waddling gait – is thought to be experiencing declines in the UK, in some cases caused by the effect of road traffic as toads travel slowly back to breeding ponds, often used for generations.

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Toads feed on slugs, worms and insects, mostly at night, and may be found around the garden hiding under plant pots, logs and bins during the day.

They return to the same ponds year after year to spawn, and they prefer larger ponds with fish.

Fish do not like to eat toad tadpoles because they find them distasteful.

In addition to death by cars, common toads also fall foul of badly designed road features such as high kerbs which steer toads towards drains, where they become trapped and die.

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The volunteers from Basingstoke are part of a national campaign named ‘Toads on Roads', coordinated by the national wildlife charity Froglife, and supported by ARG UK, a national network of volunteer groups concerned with amphibian and reptile conservation.

Over the coming weeks, thousands of volunteers across the country will be preparing to help toads across roads in a coordinated effort to help save the common toad from further declines.

For more information and join the group, write to bramphibians23@gmail.com or ajcleave2021@outlook.com, or visit Hampshire and Isle of Wight Amphibian and Reptile Group's Facebook page at facebook.com/groups/455730808110700.