We ask all Toad Patrols to submit their data at the end of the season. Collecting this information can provide an insight into how toads are faring in the UK.
The toad population at each site varies dramatically – from 100 to 10,000!
Numbers also vary greatly between years:
| Year |
Number of toads helped at toad crossings |
Number of toads killed at manned toad crossings |
Number of toad crossing sites returning data |
| 2023 |
115,177 |
10,901 |
203 |
| 2022 |
92,734 |
11,050 |
187 |
| 2021 |
81,761 |
6,266 |
177 |
| 2020 |
77,997 |
7,251 |
140 |
| 2019 |
107,401 |
13,553 |
210 |
| 2018 |
98,483 |
8,443 |
165 |
| 2017 |
83,548 |
10,017 |
161 |
| 2016 |
54,148 |
4,914 |
125 |
| 2015 |
86,783 |
6,781 |
143 |
| 2014 |
76,710 |
8,729 |
147 |
| 2013 |
83,082 |
7,483 |
150 |
| 2012 |
70,347 |
8,224 |
116 |
| 2011 |
67,692 |
7,739 |
99 |
| 2010 |
75,055 |
8, 396 |
83 |
| 2009 |
51,151 |
4, 739 |
95 |
It’s estimated that 20 tonnes of toads are killed on the UK’s roads every year!
The figures above show how much Toad Patrollers are helping toads but, sadly, even at sites where there are active volunteers some toads are still killed by traffic. Imagine what it’s like at crossings where there is no one to help or it’s too dangerous for volunteers to patrol.
Making comparisons between years is tricky as numbers can be influenced by a number of things, such as weather conditions which could cause migration to be early, delayed or sporadic.