The Amargosa toad occurs only in Oasis Valley, Nevada, specifically along a 10-mile stretch of the Amargosa River and upland springs. The Town of Beatty occurs at the southern end of the toad’s range.
The breeding season for the Amargosa toad begins in mid-February when egg clutches are laid. A female may lay up to 6,000 eggs in a single clutch, which appears as a long strand of black dots intertwined among vegetation along the edges of a slow-moving stream or shallow body of water. Toads require relatively open water that persists long enough for the tadpoles to metamorphose into toadlets and leave the water. Breeding activity tapers off in the summer and ends in July. The eggs typically develop into tadpoles within a week, and tadpoles into toadlets in about 4 weeks.
Adult toads forage at night along the water’s edge and adjacent upland areas. Toads eat invertebrates including spiders, insects, and scorpions. During the day, Amargosa toads typically take shelter in burrows, debris piles, or dense vegetation.
In 2000, a Conservation
Agreement and Strategy (.95 MB PDF) was completed
for the toad and other species that co-occur with the
toad in the Oasis Valley such as the Oasis Valley speckled
dace, a small native fish. This document was prepared
to ensure the persistence of the toad and other species
in the area, and provide management guidance to prevent
the need to protect the Amargosa toad under the Endangered
Species Act. |