Cottonstones is home to a large privately owned pond, which is a haven for UK common toads and frogs. They return each year to breed at the pond, meaning Cottonstones has a very special 'toad status'. As toads are on the "near threatened" wildlife list in England and Scotland, therefore while not fully endangered, they are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. 

Toad Patrol
The toad patrol are a group of volunteers who go out at dusk during the months of March/April, collecting and moving toads and frogs off the main roads and taking them to the pond.

-Cottonstones first registered with the national conservation charity Froglife in 2017, started patrolling in 2018, and every year since then.

-The Number of volunteers varies but the average is around 5 per night.  Some nights we find nothing, other nights lots!

-Best conditions : when darkness falls, 8 and above degrees centigrade and wet.  The toads first come out at dark so from about 6pm before the clocks change, and sometimes as late as 9pm after they change.

-Patrolling time : Feb/March to mid April, almost every night.  Some seasons 30+ nights out, in 2024 we patrolled for 56 nights.

-Dead as well live toads are counted.

         -All data collected is sent to Froglife so a             national picture of the state of toads can            be obtained.

 -A lot of information can be found on Froglife’s website under ‘Toads on Roads’. For anyone interested in volunteering, please visit this website.