The Houston toad (Anaxyrus houstonensis), formerly Bufo houstonensis, is an endangered species of amphibian that is endemic to Texas in the United States. This toad was discovered in the late 1940s and named in 1953. It was among the first amphibians added to the United States List of Endangered Native Fish and Wildlife and is currently protected by the Endangered Species Act of 1973 as an endangered species. The Houston toad was placed as "endangered" on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species from 1986 to 2022, and has worsened to "critically endangered" since then, with fewer than 250 mature individuals believed to remain in the wild as of 2021. Their kind is threatened every day as they continue to suffer from a loss of habitat, extreme drought, and massive wildfires. Their typical life expectancy is at least 3 years but it may exceed this number.
Description
The female Houston toad can grow to be (snout to vent) when mature and are typically larger and bulkier than males. Male toads are commonly long. Although generally brown and speckled, their color can range from black to purplish gray, sometimes with green patches. Their underbelly can be mottled and cream colored and each frog must have at least one brown spot on their pectoral region. Tadpoles are distinguished by their heavily pigmented top 75% of their bodies.
The toads typically live 2–3 years and create burrows for protection from the cold in the winter and the hot, dry conditions of the summer. These toads are nocturnal and feed on insects and small invertebrates. During the winter the toads dig themselves into loose soil and go through a period of hibernation.
Toadlets are typically all black and completely develop and go through metamorphosis over the course of 60 days. They are more likely to fall victim to predation by animals and birds and desiccation from the hot dry Texas environment. These tiny toads find themselves seeing shelter under logs, leaves and a various amount of cover objects in the woods to gain protection because they are unable to burrow like adult toads.
They move by making short hops. Since they cannot usually outrun their predators such as snakes, turtles, large birds, raccoons, and other frogs, the toads have developed coloration and rough skin to camouflage themselves. Their skin also secretes chemicals through the parotid glands that are distasteful, and sometimes poisonous, to predators. In addition to protecting the Houston Toad from being eaten, some of these chemicals have proven useful medicines to treat heart and nervous disorders in humans.
Contribution
The Houston toad contains toxins that are vital in the pharmaceutical realm. A variety of medical treatments are derived from the active ingredients found in the Houston Toad's toxins. The Houston toad secretes serotonin and alkaloids, some of which humans use in order to treat certain neurological and heart diseases. The toad also has alkaloids which have the ability to relieve pain and may even be stronger than morphine.
These toads also help stabilize the ecosystems by ensuring that the insect population is low. They are also a food source for animals such as spiders, raccoons, turtles, snakes, owls, as well as fire ants. Unfortunately, due to the low population size of the Houston toad it is difficult for scientists to be sure of the effects that the Houston toad has on the ecosystem.
Food habits
Adult Houston toads' main food source is insects and small invertebrates. Their diet consists of ground beetles as well as occasional small toads and ants. In order to capture their prey they either sit-and-wait or they utilize active search. The toad will create a little depression in the ground using its hind legs to conduct the first method. The toad will then wait in the divet for movement in the surrounding areas and then will attack and jump at the prey when movement is detected. These depressions are temporary; new ones are created many times each day.
Tadpoles are unable to hunt like adult Houston toads so they feed on pollen and the jelly envelope left behind by freshly hatched tadpoles. They also tend to feed on algae which can be found on leaves.
When the weather is hot in the summer or it is brittle and cold in the winter, toads can bury themselves in and under sand in order to hibernate or estivate for protection from extreme temperatures.