Wildlifeof China
Asian Common Toad
Toads
Photo: Vihansith Kulatunga · CC BY-SA 4.0
Duttaphrynus melanostictus
Basic stats
Diet
Primarily insects; also other arthropods, terrestrial worms, mollusks, amphibians, and eggs
Habitat
Lowland forests, forest margins, riparian areas, gardens, agricultural land, and urban environments up to 2,000 m
Range
Southern and Southeast Asia, from Pakistan through southern China and Indonesia; introduced to additional islands and New Guinea
Clutch size
About 40,000 eggs
Incubation period
24–48 hours to hatching
Size
Males 57–83 mm and females 65–85 mm snout–vent length
The Asian common toad is a stout, terrestrial amphibian distributed widely across southern and Southeast Asia. It occupies tropical, subtropical, and some temperate environments from sea level to approximately 2,000 metres. A habitat generalist, it occurs in disturbed lowland forest, forest margins, riparian areas, evergreen forest, gardens, farmland, and densely settled urban landscapes. Adults possess dry, warty skin, prominent cranial ridges, conspicuous parotid glands, and highly variable coloration ranging from pale yellow-brown to nearly black. (Animal Diversity Web)
Adults are nocturnal and shelter during daylight beneath rocks, logs, leaf litter, buildings, and other structures. They feed opportunistically, concentrating on insects such as ants, beetles, termites, flies, crickets, and moths while also consuming other arthropods, worms, mollusks, eggs, and occasionally amphibians. Breeding depends on water and commonly intensifies with wet-season conditions. Females deposit long strings containing roughly 40,000 externally fertilized eggs on submerged vegetation, and the aquatic larvae hatch after approximately twenty-four to forty-eight hours. (Animal Diversity Web)
Quick answers
- What does the Asian Common Toad eat?
- Primarily insects; also other arthropods, terrestrial worms, mollusks, amphibians, and eggs
- What habitat does the Asian Common Toad live in?
- Lowland forests, forest margins, riparian areas, gardens, agricultural land, and urban environments up to 2,000 m
- Where is the Asian Common Toad found?
- Southern and Southeast Asia, from Pakistan through southern China and Indonesia; introduced to additional islands and New Guinea
- How many eggs does the Asian Common Toad lay?
- About 40,000 eggs
- How long are the eggs of the Asian Common Toad incubated?
- 24–48 hours to hatching
- How big is the Asian Common Toad?
- Males 57–83 mm and females 65–85 mm snout–vent length