Caution: Road closures due to migrant toad crossing

This story appeared on the front page of The Vancouver Sun on July 27, 2010. It was written by Wendy Nordvik-Carr.

	Thousands of tiny Western Toads (size of a dime) are helped in their migration across Elk View Road by members of Fraser Valley Conservancy who block part of this road now during migration time in Chilliwack. The young toads migrate from their wet land habitat, back  to the forested habitat. And that means crossing this road.
	Ashley Peters worked as a research student in Jonathan Hughes' Paleoecology Lab at UFV where her love for the natural environment grew. She graduated from UFV this spring with a BA in Geography and now has a position with Fraser Valley Conservancy.

Look out! Road closures are in effect on Chilliwack's Elk View and Ryder Lake Roads.

The Fraser Valley Conservancy is requesting periodic closures during the western toad migration to the area's wetlands. The Species at Risk Act lists the western toad on the province's Yellow List as a "species of conservation concern."

The migration, which can occur anytime between April and July each year, is necessary for continued breeding, the Fraser Valley Conservancy says. Vehicles will kill many male western toads before they reach the wetlands to search for available females.

The female western toad has the ability to produce as many as 16,000 eggs, however most will not survive.

The three-day toad rescue program in 2008 safely escorted 35,000 toads across the road according to the Fraser Valley Conservancy.

In the UK, toad road crossings number in the hundreds and Froglife successfully mapped more than 700 crossings using Google Earth's satellite software technology.

For more information on road closures, visit www.fraservalleyconservancy.com

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