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- Apr 4, 2004
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- 1,503
Last month, while doing some yard work, I happened upon a small American Toad (Bufo americanus). It was small, know bigger than a quarter in diameter, I'd estimate.
I decided it might be fun to keep it, so I set it up in a Kritter Keeper with a shallow bowl for soaking purposes and bought extra crickets when I laid on my supply for my Rosehair. I believe it may have eaten a few of the crickets, but several were ignored, I'm of a mind they may have been a little too big. I also picked up some mealworms.
Anyway, it naturally burrowed beneath the substrate, which did not surprise me because the are natural diggers, and would pop out from time to time. But, it has since burrowed under the small water dish (a tiny glass ashtray) and has not emerged , to my knowledge for several weeks. I've seen no evidence that it has done so nocturnally, no tell-tale change in the substrate above where he is buried. Which brings me to my question....
Has it entered it's hibernative stage, despite the fact that it's been unseasonably warm that and here inside the house the coldest it has gotten was 60 degrees or so during a cold snap we had last week? I can see it under the substrate if I lift the KK and look up thru the bottom, but cannot tell if it is alive under there or not. I've been sorta giving the cage an occasional "sniff test" to try to see if perhaps he died down there, but detect no unusual odor so far The soil around him appears darker, as if damp, but I don't know if that means anything or not.
As a kid, I kept toads from time to time, but never tried to overwinter one, releasing them after a time. So I'm kind of in the dark on this. Should I dig it up, check to see it's alive, and release it before it gets too cold for it to seek natural shelter? Or should I keave it alone, and assume it has went into hibernation?
I decided it might be fun to keep it, so I set it up in a Kritter Keeper with a shallow bowl for soaking purposes and bought extra crickets when I laid on my supply for my Rosehair. I believe it may have eaten a few of the crickets, but several were ignored, I'm of a mind they may have been a little too big. I also picked up some mealworms.
Anyway, it naturally burrowed beneath the substrate, which did not surprise me because the are natural diggers, and would pop out from time to time. But, it has since burrowed under the small water dish (a tiny glass ashtray) and has not emerged , to my knowledge for several weeks. I've seen no evidence that it has done so nocturnally, no tell-tale change in the substrate above where he is buried. Which brings me to my question....
Has it entered it's hibernative stage, despite the fact that it's been unseasonably warm that and here inside the house the coldest it has gotten was 60 degrees or so during a cold snap we had last week? I can see it under the substrate if I lift the KK and look up thru the bottom, but cannot tell if it is alive under there or not. I've been sorta giving the cage an occasional "sniff test" to try to see if perhaps he died down there, but detect no unusual odor so far The soil around him appears darker, as if damp, but I don't know if that means anything or not.
As a kid, I kept toads from time to time, but never tried to overwinter one, releasing them after a time. So I'm kind of in the dark on this. Should I dig it up, check to see it's alive, and release it before it gets too cold for it to seek natural shelter? Or should I keave it alone, and assume it has went into hibernation?
