Common Toad - Conservation

Conservation

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species considers the common toad as being of "Least Concern". This is because it has a wide distribution and is, over most of its range, a common species. It is not particularly threatened by habitat loss because it is adaptable and is found in deciduous and coniferous forests, scrubland, meadows, parks and gardens. It prefers damp areas with dense foliage. The major threats it faces include loss of habitat locally, the drainage of wetlands where it breeds, agricultural activities, pollution and mortality on roads. Chytridiomycosis, an infectious disease of amphibians, has been reported in common toads in Spain and the United Kingdom and may affect some populations.

There are parts of its range where the common toad seems to be in decline. In Spain, increased aridity and habitat loss have led to a diminution in numbers and it is regarded as "Near Threatened". A population in the Sierra de Gredos mountain range is facing predation by otters and increased competition from the frog Rana perezi. Both otter and frog seem to be extending their ranges to higher altitudes.The common toad cannot be legally sold or traded in the United Kingdom but there is a slow decline in toad numbers and it has therefore been declared a Biodiversity Action Plan priority species. In Russia, it is considered to be a "Rare Species" in the provinces of Bashkiria, Tataria, Yamal-Nenets Autonomous County and Irkutsk, but during the 1990s, it became more abundant in Moscow Province.

It has been found that urban populations of common toad occupying small areas and isolated by development show a lower level of genetic diversity and reduced fitness as compared to nearby rural populations. The researchers demonstrated this by genetic analysis and by noting the greater number of physical abnormalities among urban as against rural tadpoles when raised in a controlled environment. It was considered that long term depletion in numbers and habitat fragmentation can reduce population persistence in such urban environments.