European amphibians under threat through climate change
European Toads under threat
One year in consumed by youthful curiosity I naively brought home a pair of toads locked together in love from a river in Devon where I was raised. The following year I had the delight of finding my two ponds (one concrete, the other plastic-lined) full of croaking mating pairs - I remember one night I counted over 25 of them. The rather gentle soothing noise kept me awake and enthralled for several nights; I am pretty sure their presence kept the local cats entertained for years until the population disappeared. From then on, for me - despite my late grandfather having been an expert on breeding Shubunkins - silent goldfish just never quite held the same fascination.
20 years or so later (in 2005) I was equally thrilled to find a ‘fire’ salamander in the moist soil-based cellar of the barn in the old French farm house (where my solitary bee box is situated). I nicknamed him/her Merlin. It is the same oak-framed barn - apparently built in 1877 - that also plays host to my occasional carpenter bees looking for new habitats and last winter sheltered three bats behind a large bottle. In 2006, I was happy to discover 5 darker coloured young salamanders. However apart from one further sighting, three years on they are more elusive.
Their disappearance is probably because they are shy and prefer the crevices under the stone steps. As it is moisture level remains relatively high in the cellar (due to some guttering that I have to repair) and the temperature remains quite stable. I have been told that the salamander population was quite healthy in years gone by because next door there was a 5m x 5m square brick lined watering hole for the farm animals. It has however dried up in the last ten years due to cracks cause by the roots of a large nearby tree and general disrepair.
Today I came across a BBC article on Bleak outlook for Europe’s toads talking about how climate change and the destruction of habitats is threathening amphibians.
It reminded me that I have a pond project (well a big hole) I need to finish excavating. Perhaps I do need to renew my efforts this autumn.