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Couch?s Spadefoot Toad

Scientific Name: Scaphiopus couchii

Residency: Found year-round in the southwestern United States and in Mexico.

Temporal Activity: They are nocturnal and active during rainy conditions. Also, it burrows itself deeply underground, and this is an adaptation to the extreme environments in which they live.

Diet: Carnivorous; eats mostly insects.

Breeding: Seasonal breeders who breed May through September, during a period of rainfall. The male lets out a cry or groan, like the anxious bleat of a sheep while looking for a mate. They breed in rain pools, and lay their eggs in small masses which can hatch in 24 hours. Then, tadpoles can develop in as few as eight days.

Predators: The parasite Psuedodiplorchis americanus (worms) infect breeding toads and feed on their blood during hibernation. This causes some infected toads to not survive hibernation, and some might not breed during this time.

Photo: To be added.

 

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