<div class="field field--name-field-common-name field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Gulf Coast Toad

Well I have about 1 hour of research, so I think we will trust your answer :) Thanks for all the help. I did send an email over yesterday asking toad trackers (through the Houston Zoo) if they would take a look at it too. We'll see if they have anything to add. Thanks again for the help Goody!

Thanks for the updated photos, Laura. I'm sticking with my original guess of Gulf Coast toad, based on what I see in your images and your location (based on range maps for toad species). I'm not overly familiar with all Texas toad species, and I could still be wrong, but I've put a lot of time into researching this one and feel as if Bufo nebulifer fits . :-)

Much to my surprise this little guy was in the exact same place as yesterday. I recruited my (much less squeamish) daughter to hold him to try and take a picture of his underside. He didn't like being picked up at all so we just tried once then I tried putting him in a glass bowl, neither produced great results, but I am posting them just in case it helps any.

Most of my "frogger" friends also say young Gulf Coast Toad

Welcome aboard Tim

TimCole

Not a Red-spotted Toad..too far from it's range.

Like I mentioned in my last comment, I think yellow feet on the under-side will help determine whether or not it's the red-spotted toad. If they're not yellow then it gets a little harder to determine. I totally understand your apprehension to picking up the little guy so don't worry about it. My goal in the field is to disturb my subjects as little as possible, but sometimes I need to see more for the ID so I harass them just a tad and then let them be. Hopefully we can figure out its identity. :-)

Not even sure that it is a Native Species.. Very Similar in shape to a Bumble Bee Toad

I suggest sending a few pictures to the Houston Zoo for Identification

I tried really really hard goody to get a picture of his belly. Honestly I was scared to pick it up. Small steps for me..but it was a much lighter color than the rest of the body, I don't know if it was a lighter shade of brown or grayish/white, but definitely lighter.

Thanks for the info! I have never tried to ID a frog before and was a bit surprised to see the difference in colors among the same species, so I just took a guess as a red spotted toad. Only because it was the only dark colored frog on the page I saw-not very scientific. Lisa went with red spotted toad too. I am curious about the red spot under the eye is that a way to scare of would be predators? And is it okay to pick them up? My girls wanted to hold it, but I didn't want to hurt it or pee on them :)

I'd love to see the bottom of this little fella. I don't know if all red-spotted toads look like the one I spotted in AZ, but it sure might tell us more. :-) http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/8342240

LisaPowers

Goody, If you look at the second photo, there seem to be no cranial crest and the parotoid appears to be round.

I also looked at the known range for other possible species and ruled some out based on that information. Of course, range maps are ever-changing as new voucher specimens are verified.

My best guess based on the physical attributes and colorations (which always vary between specimens, even of the same species) is a juvenile Gulf Coast toad (Bufo nebulifer). I'm definitely open to other suggestions! :-) http://www.herpsoftexas.org/content/gulf-coast-toad

LisaPowers

Laura, Going by the shape of the parotoid glands, it appears to be a red-spotted toad. http://www.herpsoftexas.org/content/red-spotted-toad

I just saw the note and am looking it over now...