Updated 4/1: Toads may be on the move
It’s no Capistrano, but when the toads return to the old reservoir in Upper Roxborough, the neighborhood gets excited.
Here's a Toads Gone Wild update from E2P correspondent Laurie Conrad:
It's no Capistrano, but when the toads return to the old reservoir in Upper Roxborough, the neighborhood gets excited.
The toads, and some frogs, too, make their way up the wooded banks of the Schuylkill River in late March or early April, instinct driving them toward the swampy area of their birth, where a full-on amphibian orgy commences. Once eggs are laid, partiers gradually disburse back into the woods, and the species survive another cycle in the big city.
Timing is everything, which is why one warmer, wetter early spring night will bring hundreds of critters up the hillside at the same time. Blocking off a grid of roads around the reservoir saves many toad lives, so a band of volunteers gently shepherded by Schuylkill Valley Nature Center and Fairmount Park staff, along with other volunteer groups, hop into action when the toads do.
There's more than a little wiggle room when it comes to predicting amphibian behavior, so a bunch of us showed up last night, alerted by a few toad sightings. But it was more or less a false alarm, though I proudly escorted one eager arrival across Port Royal Avenue toward his (the guys arrive early to establish their turf) annual date with destiny.
Yeah, it's come to that in the vanishing wilds of the Delaware Valley. We're saving 'em one toad at a time. Every year more critters wind up as road pizza; fewer live ones are counted. But they keep trying. Shouldn't we?
Tonight's the night (maybe)
Weather conditions indicate that the big migration may happen this weekend. Come after dusk to the athletic fields near Ridge and Port Royal Avenue. Park at the fields and walk slowly and carefully down Port Royal. Bring a flashlight and a sense of wonder.
For more on the toad migration, check www.dougwechsler.com/toads.html.
To volunteer, call Lisa Levinson, 215-620-2130 or e-mail lisa@publiceyephilly.org.
UPDATE SUNDAY 3/29: Laurie reports: "Didn't happen Saturday night, but could happen at any time now. Might be tonight - might be later in week - but definitely very soon!"
UPDATE WEDNESDAY 4/1: Toad watchers are on alert as tonight is shaping up to be perfect toad migration weather. No foolin'. They migrated on April 1 last year. It's about time, says this toad patroler, who spent the other night wandering the chilly streets of Upper Roxborough in a dayglow orange vest without seeing a single toad.
