Marsupial toad: they literally stuff tadpoles into pockets on their bodies (9 photos)

Australia is a marsupial continent. Millions of kangaroos, marsupial martens, moles and... toads live there? Wait, since when do toads need a pouch to reproduce?





Do you see the whitish thing on the back leg? This is a tadpole's tail sticking out of the bag!

Marsupiality is an important adaptation in the life of animals, but its purpose can be different. Mammals became marsupials to gain greater control over the rate of growth and development of their young. In difficult times, a marsupial mother may slow down the growth of her offspring in order to gain more energy and survive the crisis. And the toads have acquired bags so as not to depend on open water!



All marsupial toads look a little sad. Below in the text you will understand why.

Yes, the toads were able to leave the reservoirs, but by their nature, amphibians cannot escape. Their skin is still very thin and still needs to be moistened to breathe. Therefore, amphibians inhabited tropical rainforests in the west of the mainland, in New England, New South Wales and Queensland.





Is there a toad here? Are my eyes deceiving me?

Amphibians' days are filled with the best activity possible - lying down. During daylight hours, they hide under tree roots, rotting wood and stones. Fortunately, this is not difficult to do if you are only 2 centimeters in length. Marsupial toads are active at night: they hunt invertebrates and scream loudly, calling for females.



Man, why did you wake me up?

Animals have problems with fertility. Yes, they are capable of breeding all year round, but females produce at most 50 eggs per season. For reference: the maximum fertility of the European gray toad is 6,500 eggs per clutch.



Oh, and Svetka studied better than you at school and her salary is higher. Will we continue to compare each other?

To increase the chances of successful survival of the few offspring, the species had to use parental instincts. The male and female do not go far from the eggs hidden in a damp place and protect them as best they can with their puny bodies. Well, when the eggs mature and the embryos begin to turn into tadpoles, the toad stuffs its offspring into its pockets! Those same bags are located on the sides, near the paws. That's where the kids will develop.



It's not much, but it's honest work.

Tadpoles usually need water for further development. But their father’s bag replaces them with a pond. The toads grow up and develop at the expense of their reserves, and the father provides them with security. Only when the babies finish transforming into adult amphibians do they thank their parents, climb out of their bags and set off to live this life.



The tadpoles have lost their color because they no longer need to hide from predators.

As a result, marsupial toads spend a lot of time and effort raising 50 (at best) babies, while others can produce thousands of children at a time. Is it worth it? For a while, yes, it was worth it. Having gained independence from bodies of water, marsupial toads were able to inhabit places where other tailless amphibians did not stay for long. Most of the population lives in mountain forests at an altitude of 800 meters above sea level.



I'm pregnant. I don't like(

But then a man came to Australia and began to cut down the forests. This greatly reduced the number of frogs and laid the foundation for a future disaster. In 2019-2020, when Australian forests caught fire, marsupial toads suffered perhaps the most. Now only 5 small refugia remain from the species’ habitat - the most preserved and stable areas of wild nature.



Now do you understand why frogs are sad?

Will land amphibians survive? I don't know. It seems that human efforts are not enough to stabilize the situation. It's a pity. I wouldn't want to lose the world's only marsupial toads!