TOAD
A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scientific taxonomy, but is common in popular culture (folk taxonomy), in which toads are associated with drier skin and more terrestrial habitats than animals commonly called frogs.[1] In scientific taxonomy, toads are found in the families Bufonidae, Bombinatoridae, Discoglossidae,
Pelobatidae, Rhinophrynidae, Scaphiopodidae, and
Microhylidae.[2] There is no definitive collective noun for toads, and like most collective nouns, the listed proposals are fanciful; one example is a knot of toads;[3] others include a lump, nest, or knob of toads.
The function of the bumps on the skins of toads has been speculated to be to help the animal to blend more effectively into its environment by breaking up its visual outline.[citation needed] Usually the largest of the bumps are those that cover the parotoid glands. The bumps commonly are referred to as "warts", but this is fanciful; they have nothing to do with warts, being fixed in size, present on healthy specimens and are not a result of infection or injury.
A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scientific taxonomy, but is common in popular culture (folk taxonomy), in which toads are associated with drier skin and more terrestrial habitats than animals commonly called frogs.[1] In scientific taxonomy, toads are found in the families Bufonidae, Bombinatoridae, Discoglossidae,
Pelobatidae, Rhinophrynidae, Scaphiopodidae, and
Microhylidae.[2] There is no definitive collective noun for toads, and like most collective nouns, the listed proposals are fanciful; one example is a knot of toads;[3] others include a lump, nest, or knob of toads.
The function of the bumps on the skins of toads has been speculated to be to help the animal to blend more effectively into its environment by breaking up its visual outline.[citation needed] Usually the largest of the bumps are those that cover the parotoid glands. The bumps commonly are referred to as "warts", but this is fanciful; they have nothing to do with warts, being fixed in size, present on healthy specimens and are not a result of infection or injury.
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