Common toads (Bufo bufo) mating. The male has climbed onto the female's back. He will grasp the female for several days until she is ready to ovulate.
Common toads (Bufo bufo) mating. The male has climbed onto the female's back. He will grasp the female for several days until she is ready to ovulate. This is done in water, with the male fertilising the eggs as they are laid. The common toad is found throughout much of Eurasia. Outside the breeding season it is found in moist woodland, scrub and grassland, but it must return to water to breed. The breeding season is in the spring, and males fight each other for access to females. Females lay around 5000 eggs in long strings in the water. The common toad feeds on spiders, insects, snails, slugs and even smaller toads.
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Photo credit: © DAVID AUBREY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: amphibian, animal, biological, biology, breeding, bufo, common, couple, duo, fauna, female, male, mating, nature, pair, reproducing, reproduction, reproductive, toad, toads, wildlife, zoological, zoology
