Toad Patrol

This is just to let you know that we are ready when they are on the move. At the moment it is too cold although there are always a few that try their luck ahead of the main surge. Often they don’t make it. This has already been the case this year. Currently we are keeping an eye on all 4 local sites and the night time temperatures  and we do expect large numbers to move in the next week or two.

In this area the 4 sites are:

Brow Top Road       –   site number  967      Crossroads

Black Moor Road    –     ”         ”         918

Dimples Lane           –     ”         ”         917   Haworth

Denholme Road       –     ”         ”        713   Oxenhope

Hazard and Risk Assessments have been completed  for all sites. All volunteers are registered with Froglife for insurance purposes.

Only adults will patrol your 2 sites.

We have now done 3 sessions of litter picking along Brow Top Road. We will try to do at least one more. The amount of litter is appalling. Being an eyesore is saddening and annoying but on another level it is detrimental to wildlife, not least the amphibians.

We have been concerned about the amount of water collecting on Brow Top Road where a stream flowing from the south was pooling at the road edge then covering the whole road at times of continuous high rainfall.  There is a conduit but it was obviously blocked. A team has been in the last week  (from Bradford Council?) and cleared it  out,  The water literally flows again   now into Sugden Reservoir.  We are wondering if the toads will use it.

Cathy Furniss, Toad Patrol cathy_furness@hotmail.com