Fire-bellied toad
Bombina bombina
TAXONOMY
Rana bombina Linnaeus, 1761, Europe and western Asia. No subspecies recognized.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Firebelly toad; French: Sonneur á ventre feu; German: Rotbauchunke; Spanish: El sapillo de vientre de fuego.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
The skin on the back of these frogs is covered with rounded warts and is dark gray to black, with large dark spots. Some individuals living in pools with a lot of vegetation are camouflaged by being bright green with sparse dark green spots. The belly is red or orange, with large bluish black spots and many white dots. There is no external eardrum (tympanic membrane), and the pupil of the eye is triangular.
DISTRIBUTION
These frogs are found in central and eastern Europe from Denmark and western Germany east to the Ural Mountains and south to the Caucasus Mountains. In the north they range to the Gulf of Finland. They also are found in Turkey. Some have been seen in Sweden, but these are most likely an introduced population.
HABITAT
Fire-bellied toads are aquatic in forests and wetlands. They live in dense vegetation as well as open areas, such as drainage ditches. They are also common to permanent freshwaters, such as river valleys, shallow stagnant lakes, ponds, swamps, bogs, ditches, flooded rice fields, and quarries. Sometimes they are
found in slow-moving waters, such as springs, irrigation channels, rivers, and streams. In other areas, they seem to prefer stagnant water.
BEHAVIOR
These frogs are active mostly during the day when temperatures reach about 60°F (about 15°C). In the daytime they spend most of their time in the water or near the shore hunting for food. At night, when the humidity in the air is higher, they move onto land to continue foraging. During windy or cold weather, their activity levels decrease. From October to April they hibernate in mud at the bottom of ponds or on land. Although they are active primarily by day, males call mostly at dusk. As with other fire-bellied toads, this species displays the unken reflex when threatened. Despite this behavior and their toxic skin, they are still common prey for many animals.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Fire-bellied toads eat a variety of insects, but more than half of their diet is made up of aquatic prey. Of course, the more time they spend foraging on land, the more terrestrial insects they include in the diet. Terrestrial insects eaten most often include beetles, flies, and ants. The tadpoles may eat some aquatic insects as well, but they mainly eat algae and plants.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
These toads breed from May to September, during which time males call either underwater or from a position floating on the water's surface. The male grabs the female around the waist, and she deposits up to 300 eggs. After about two months, eggs hatch, and tadpoles usually metamorphose before autumn. Toads become adults at about three years of age and live for about 12 years.
CONSERVATION STATUS
The IUCN lists this species as Lower Risk/Conservation Dependent. In western Europe this species is threatened or extinct in many areas. The destruction of wetland habitats seems to be the major cause of its decline. In other areas, it seems to be one of the most common toads.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
As with other fire-bellied toads, this species is common in the pet trade and laboratory.
