RAUK - Archived Forum - Posts by David Dodds:

Thanks Colin & David (Alan I hope you're tooth's back to normal!)

superglued discs seems a more viable approach for a simple survey, between taping bat ultrasound!

Here's a supplementary question: what's the best simple indicator of age in toads (apart from killing it, slicing it's bones and counting the rings, which is maybe a little too disruptive!) Body length, weight or ???

Regards,

David

Hi

This is probably old hat to most people here, but I wonder if anyone can suggest a simple/harmless way of marking toads for a few days?

I spend a lot of time with a project studying bats on the Union Canal near Edinburgh and see a lot of common toads after dark, emerging from the stone retaining wall alongside the canal towpath. I'm more than a little intrigued by them and I fancy a little side project looking at their population/movement over a few nights.

The only references I've found are to clipping toenails, which I'm wary of and waterproof stomach bands (toad in a cummerbund?).

Any suggestions?

Regards,

David Dodds 

Thanks Colin,

That's an intriguing proposition.

I wasn't seriously considering nail-clipping - that sort of technique needs skill/experience.

I had thought about some sort of paint mark, but wasn't sure:-

1) The right type of paint to avoid harm to the toad

2) Whether toad skin is porous enough for even non-toxic paint to be harmful

3) Whether paint would actually STICK to toad skin!

If it's possible to identify toads from a dorsal pic that would make a very easy/non-intrusive technique - I'll give it a try.

David

Hi David

You may like to try eBay.

It seems odd, but there are dealers selling brand new Garmin units from the US there, which often sell for less than the UK RRP.

I bought a brand new Garmin Etrex (the basic unit) for ú70 + ú8 p&p from a dealer in the USA on eBay. The UK shop price is about ú130.

Obviously you need to to look carefully at feedback etc to make sure these are genuine eBay traders.

Regards

David Dodds

Hi

Not sure why I didn't think of this last year, but...

Whilst bat surveying along the Union Canal west of Edinburgh in August last year I encountered large numbers of small newts on the towpath one evening. At the time I assumed they were that year's young, leaving the canal in the same way as froglets and toadlets do.

Thinking about it now, the canal must be the worst possible habitat for newts:

• It's deep - surely newts prefer shallow water?
• There is a lot of canal traffic - often several boats an hour.
• There are plenty of fish to eat them
• There are plenty of ducks and swans ditto
• The boat traffic limits the amount of floating weed, though there are some small reed beds.

On the plus side the canal is host to a thriving and diverse invertebrate population, so there's no shortage of food.

Can they really be breeding there?

Any thoughts gratefully received!

David

Surrounding habitat for the stretch of canal I described is:

- Well-established cattle pasture on one side

- Towpath, 3' retaining stone wall with open deciduous woodland behind on the other

The nearest body of water is around 500m, though there may be small ditches etc. I've missed.

The newts were on the towpath so they had emerged from the canal or the stone wall or climbed down the wall from the woodland. The wall has very little mortar left and is well-used by toads as a refuge - most nights theres one every metre or tow on the towpath.

Why not have a dual scale of fees for volunteers and professionals? I've seen this done with some success.

Don't forget most consultants are just trying to earn a crust and probably do have a speciality where they probably do give something back to conservation.

The bat project group I'm involved in (www.batml.org.uk) recently signed up our 100th volunteer and I'd estimate 70% of our volunteers are consultants, countryside rangers, biodiversity officers and other professionals, all giving their spare time to conservation.