Patrols help toads to cross the road

A record number of toads have been helped across a busy road in Herefordshire this year thanks to a dedicated team of volunteers.

A total of 1,012 creatures were moved across the road to Bodenham Lake Nature Reserve between February and April in an effort to prevent them from being run over.

Every year, the toads cross the lane from where they have spent the winter in the woodland to reach the lake where they mate and spawn. Toads instinctively head to the same ponds and lakes each spring.

As the roads which these routes cross become busier each year, the toads find themselves in mortal danger.

To prevent roadkill, Herefordshire Wildlife Trust set up the Go Toads project in 2016, with annual Toad Patrols. This year twice as many toads were helped to the lake than in 2017. Samantha Herbert