This Blog covers nature sightings and related news in the Calderdale area.
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Friday 27 March 2020

More amphibians

Found this unusual colour morph of common toad crossing the lane to the pond.
It looks reminiscent of a brown version of the European green toad Bufo viridis.





Meanwhile, the smooth newts are having a nocturnal ball at the moment,
floating around in the water column, snapping at daphnia and chasing each other.


6 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thanks Steve, the toad looked stranger in the flesh and really stood out from the others.

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  2. Interesting.. and nice shots Chris.

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  3. Interesting that Smooth Newts are known to be present at Brighouse, as far up the main valley as Cromwell Bottom, and as far up the Shibden Valley as Shibden Park Lake (an old HSS record.)
    Then no one finds them in the Calder Valley (except from a garden pond at Roils Head wnere the owner introduced them some years ago.) (M H.) The next place we have a record for Smooth Newts is Todmorden, where they seem pretty well distributed.
    All the other ponds etc that have newts in between produce records of Palmate Newts only. These are often mixed in with the Smooth Newts as at Cromwell Bottom Local Nature Reserve.
    Incidentally, it is recommended nowadays NOT to transfer amphibians or their eggs, including frogspawn, from pond to pond, as this can spread diseases of amphibians around.

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  4. Yes its interesting. Pamlmates tend to be more numerous in soft water areas and the other two take over in hard water. Looks like the palmates in Calderdale roughly follow the gritstone.

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