Eastern American Toad and Fowler’s Toad. Can you spot the difference?

The main way to tell the difference between the two is to see how many warts are in each dark spot on the back. Eastern American Toads have only one or two warts in each spot, while Fowler’s Toads have three or more warts in each spot. The toad on the left is a Fowler’s Toad, but they do hybridize with Eastern American Toads making it very hard to differentiate.

Backyard Creature Of The Week:

Fowler’s toad (Bufo fowleri) is a species of toad in the Bufonidae family found in North America. Fowler’s toads are usually brown, gray, olive green and rust red in color and have black edged dark spots on its back, with a light middorsal stripe. In each of the dark spots there are found to be three or more “warts”. Potential predators of B. fowleri include snakes, birds, and smaller mammals. One defensive behavior it will use is its coloration to blend into its surroundings (camouflage). These toads are able to do this because they tend to have coloration that is more natural, or earth toned. Another defense includes a noxious secretion that comes from the large warts on their backs. If attacked, this secretion will irritate the predator’s mouth and, if ingested, can be poisonous to smaller mammals. If roughly handled, B. fowleri will also lie still on their backs and play dead. (Wiki.)