[Picture of Puertorican CRESTED TOAD]


Learn About The
Threatened Puertorican
CRESTED TOAD



PUERTORICAN CRESTED TOAD SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION


KINGDOM Animalia
PHYLUM Chordata
CLASS Amphibia
ORDER Anura
FAMILY Bufonidae
GENUS/SPECIES COMMON NAME
Peltophryne lemur Puertorican crested toad


The Puerto Rican crested toads are the only toad species
native to Puerto Rico. They once ranged over the entire
island of Puerto Rico at lower elevations.
They may have also been found on Virgin Gorda, but are
thought to be extinct on that island.
At present they are found only in single locations on the northwest and southwest coasts of Puerto Rico.

As members of the Amphibians' class they are "cold-blooded"
vertebrate animals.
Amphibian means "two lives," a reference to the metamorphosis
of some frogs and their relatives.
The tadpole, the larval stage of a frog, is usually an
aquatic plant-eater with gills and a long, finned tail.
The tadpole lacks legs and swims by moving in a wave-like
fashion like its fishlike ancestors.
During the transformation (metamorphosis) that leads to the
"second life," legs develop and the gills disappear.
The young tetrapod crawls onto shore and begins its life
as a terrestrial hunter.

The Puerto Rican crested toad is a medium-sized toad,
2.5 to 4.5 inches in snout-vent length, yellowish-olive
to blackish-brown in color, with prominent supraorbital
crests and a distinctive long, upturned snout.
Males are considerably smaller than females, and exhibit
less prominent crests.
Both sexes have textured, pebbled skin, but the female's
is much rougher and she has a high crest above her eyes.
Both have striking marbled golden eyes.
No studies have been conducted on the Puerto Rican
crested toad's feeding habits, but as a general rule
toads are opportunistic feeders that primarily consume
insects and other invertebrates.


This toad is presently known to exist only on the
following areas of the main island of Puerto Rico:
  • A single large population is known from the southwest
    coast in the Guanica Commonwealth Forest.
  • A small population is believed to survive on the
    north coast.
  • It has also been collected on the southern coastal
    plain near Coamo.
  • Northern coastal plain collections have been made near
    Isabela, Quebradillas, Arecibo, Barceloneta, Vega Baja,
    and Bayamon.


The breeding of this species is not completely understood
but it appears to be sporadic and highly dependent upon
occasional heavy rains.
When rainfall and surface water are adequate, more than
one breeding event may occur in a single season.
Breeding is concentrated in a very short period, and
within a few weeks the toadlets metamorphose and quickly
disperse.
There is a high fidelity in breeding sites that offer
the right combination of elevation, topography, and
ponded fresh water.

This species has also been propagated in captivity
and approximately 850 toadlets were released in Cambalache
Commonwealth Forest on the north coast in 1984 and 1985.
To date, over 4,OOO toadlets have been produced in captivity
at the Metro Toronto Zoo and returned to Puerto Rico.


WHY ARE THESE CUTE AMPHIBIANS THREATENED???



The Puerto Rican crested toad was thought to be extinct
until 1967, and six were finally captured for a captive
breeding program in 1982. Due to its small size and nocturnal
habits, it is difficult to estimate the size of the present
population, but there may be a few hundred at most, not
counting the 4,000 captive bred toadlets and over 12,000
tadpoles which have been released. It is listed as a threatened species by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
Even though the Puerto Rican crested toad has been also
collected on the island of Virgin Gorda in the British
Virgin Islands, the known historic distribution on Virgin
Gorda is very limited. The species has not been observed
there for at least 2 decades.
It is assumed to have been extirpated from that island.

The Guanica Commonwealth Forest population in Puerto Rico
is relatively stable and consists of approximately 1,5OO
to 2,OOO individuals.
The northern population consists of approximately 25
individuals.
Nothing is known about population numbers in other
localities, since the species is very difficult to
encounter on a periodic basis.


  • The Puerto Rican crested toad occurs at low elevations
    where there is exposed limestone or porous, well-drained
    soil offering an abundance of fissures and cavities.
  • Adult toads are semifossorial and widely dispersed
    when not breeding.
  • Because of this behavior, the location or even presence
    of adult toads when not breeding is difficult to detect.
  • The loss of habitat from filling and drainage of
    breeding sites is one of the reasons for its current
    threatened status.
  • Another reason is the direct loss of adults and their
    habitat during land development.
  • Although this toad has historically been rare,
    the species has undoubtedly declined further as its
    coastal lowland habitat has been destroyed by
    agricultural and urban development.
  • Known breeding sites have been filled or drained
    for construction, cultivation, and mosquito control.
  • Construction projects currently proposed could
    affect the toad's status in the Guanica Commonwealth
    Forest area.
  • Secondary factors may also be affecting the species'
    status. Predation on dispersing toadlets may be heavy,
    particularly from birds, and could become a significant
    factor if populations are greatly reduced by other problems.
  • Reproduction in this species appears to rely on climatic
    events, sometimes one or more years apart, that occur at
    irregular intervals. Such reliance may create natural
    fluctuations in population sizes that could, when compounded
    by a reduced availability of breeding sites, increase the
    likelihood of whole subpopulations being eliminated.


TO HELP PROTECT THE Puertorican CRESTED TOAD

What is Being Done:

  • Conversations are continuing in an effort to find
    alternatives that will avoid destruction of the toad's
    breeding habitat.
  • The captive-breeding programs continue in effect.
  • The Metro Toronto Zoo has developed an educational
    poster to be distributed throughout Puerto Rico. The
    Spanish-language poster describes the toad and explains
    the threats to its survival.
  • You can help by reporting any sightings to the
    pertinent authorities.



Music From: VERDE LUZ - El Topo



Last Updated: 4-August-1998
WebMaster: Daisy Moreno daisymoreno@HotMail.com
Copyright © 1998. All rights reserved

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