Fowler's Toad
Bufo fowleri
Summary: A relatively common species in the Indiana Dunes area and south of the Kankakee River, but restricted to sand areas in this region. Old localities from the Waukegan sand area apparently have not survived.
Description: Fowler's toad is of medium size, 2.0 to 3.75 inches (5.1 to 9.5 cm), and of stocky build. Coloration is usually brown, tan, or gray above, with dark spots or blotches, and whitish below. It differs from the American toad in having three or more warts within each of the larger dark spots; in having a plain unmarked underside, or with only a single dark breast spot; and with paratoid glands and cranial crests in contact.
Distribution and Status: The Fowler's toad is a southern species which reaches the northernmost limits of it's range within our region. All currently known populations are disjunct and associated with the sand areas near the Kankakee River, and in the Indiana Dunes region. Historical populations at the Waukegan and Illinois Beach sand area have apparently been extirpated, and no Fowler's toads have been reported there in many decades.
In parts of the Indiana Dunes area Fowler's toad remains relatively common, although populations are fragmented to some extent. In the Kankakee sand area, the species is very abundant near Hopkins Park, but apparently rare north of the Kankakee River.
Habitat: Fowler's toads are most common in open sand prairie and panne habitats, although occasional individuals are taken within woods. Populations in the dunes areas are often within site of Lake Michigan (Breden, 1988; Mierzwa et al., 1998). Breeding takes place in a variety of shallow wetland types.
Voice: An unpleasant nasal sound, usually a prolonged note held for two or three seconds; "waaah."
Phenology: Breeding occurs late in the season, in late May and early June. Tadpoles develop quickly and normally would be able to exit the ponds in July. Juveniles and adults disperse widely, burrowing into loose sand and foraging on the surface whenever conditions are suitable.
Literature Cited:
Breden, F. 1988. Natural history and ecology of Fowler's toad, Bufo woodhousei fowleri (Amphibia: Bufonidae) in the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Fieldiana Zoology, New Series 49:1-16.
Mierzwa, K. S., S. A. Cortwright, and D. Beamer. 1998. Amphibians and reptiles. Pp. 137-158 in: M. E. Becker and S. Hammann (eds.), Status, trends, and potential of biological communities of the Grand Calumet River basin. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Environmental and Social Analysis Branch, Chicago District.
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| Updated: October 9, 2007
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