This book, intended for use with secondary and college students, presents a middle eastern. S states of texas, arkansas, oklahoma, and louisiana. Records of the central plains spadefoot toad, scaphiopus bombifrons cope, in south dakota and wyoming. Write descriptions of each character s traits, thoughts, feelings, words, and actions. Dec 05, 2017 the spadefoot toads of north america possess the usual array of toad like features, including a round and stocky body, with protruding eyes and short feet. This spadefoot remains in a deep burrow most of the time except for its explosive mating period.
Morey 1 there are two recognizable groups of north american spadefoot toads, scaphiopus holbrook, 1836 and spea cope, 1866a. Night of the spadefoot toads and flush share similar themes and topics such as the environment. A study in texas showed that individuals used temporary ponds for breeding and larval development from march to april 11406. Frogs of australia notaden nichollsi desert spadefoot toad. It has been compared to the sound of a flock of ducks slowed down. Ben realizes this is not good because the spadefoot toads are endangered and if. Two yellow stripes run from eye down back, forming a rough hourglass shape. Start studying night of the spadefoot toad chapter 8 modified text. Spadefoot toads have a broad, horny spade projecting from the inside of each hind foot and used by the animals in burrowing. Night of the spadefoot toads peachtree publishing company inc. In the chapter, ben realized that is was not good for the endangered spade foot toads for the developers to purchase the property and built it at a place that was inhabited by the species. Night of the spadefoot toads in chapter 11 pages 59 what was it about see answers 2. The signature character of the genus scaphiopus is the dark shovelshaped protrusion on the inside of each hind foot.
Couch s spadefoot toad or couch s spadefoot scaphiopus couchii is a species of north american spadefoot toad family scaphiopodidae. Tibbets recently lost her husband, a wellregarded herpetologist, and that her sisterinlaw who lives next door owns the property and plans to sell it to developers. With respect to those species that are referable to spea, the literature is divided, with some authors following bragg 1944, 1945b, stebbins 1951, 1985, blair w. Great basin spadefoot spea intermontana idaho fish and. Tibbits tells ben the reason why her sisterinlaw wants to sell the house. Recently relocated to massachusetts, fifthgrader ben moroney is homesick for the desert, lizard and best friend he left behind in arizona. The night of the spadefoot toads, by bill harley, deals with the extinction of habitats, vernal pools, for spadefoot toads. The specific name hammondii is in honor of physician and naturalist william alexander hammond. The absence of spadefoot toads in east asia today is a result of extinction. Night of the spadefoot toads by bill harley overdrive.
Specific binding of 125iboltonhunter substance p 125ibhsp was. Independent writing draft an essay comparing two characters from the book with examples. Bens adjustment to his new environment is not going well until he unexpectedly finds a kindred spirit in his eccentric fifthgrade science teacher, mrs. Hurters spadefoot toads are found in the southern u. Hurters spadefoot is an explosive breeder and they will develop from egg to frog very quickly if water is scarce. There s descriptions, distributions, breeding calls, location or physical description search, and a glossary to explain difficult terms. He feels more at home, however, when he finds a kindred spirit in his eccentric science teacher, mrs. Spadefoot toads definition of spadefoot toads by the free. Night hunters, adults eat insects and other invertebrates. Independent writing write two paragraphs to compare and contrast two characters. Great basin spadefoot spea intermontana idaho fish and game. Western spadefoot toad larvae resemble those of other spea species in that both cannibal and noncannibal morphotypes display coloration that is variable relative to their habitat.
Nancy pau, wildlife biologist at the parker river refuge, said in an email that its hard to estimate the eastern spadefoot population size because it fluctuates a lot. Night of the spadefoot toads night of the spadefoot toads chapter 1 who are the main characters so far. Night of the spadefoot toads by bill harley, paperback. She shares with ben a love of amphibians and reptiles and exploring the natural world. Hurters spadefoot spends most of its time in a ground burrow. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland, intermittent freshwater marshes, hot deserts, and temperate desert.
The call of the western spadefoot is a short loud trill, like a quick snore, lasting less than one second. Their name is derived from the hard, keratinous protrusions in their hind feet, which allows them to efficiently dig backwards into the soil. Jul 15, 20 as bens obsession with saving the spadefoot toads habitat grows, his schoolwork and his relationships with his family and new friends suffer. It is this feature that fascinates me the most about these little toads, their adaptability to hostile environments where amphibians should not, in theory. Spea hammondii, also known as the western spadefoot, western spadefoot toad, hammond s spadefoot, or hammond s spadefoot toad, is a species of amphibian in the family scaphiopodidae. I like that the book shows children that it is okay to be different and go against the standards. The bookseller, who says that he dislikes sermons only because they dont sell, adds that he will take them to london with him.
The pupils of the eyes are vertical and elliptical. This satisfying story explores the powerful impact of. These toads were once thought to be a subspecies of the eastern spadefoot toad. Like all of us who are not good looking they have to rely on their wits.
New localities for the plains spadefoot toad, tiger salamander, and the great plains toad in the canadian prairies. While often referred to as a toad, the eastern spadefoot is actually a. Tibbits and ben just get back from toad watching because it was raining. Night of the spadefoot toad chapter 117 flashcards quizlet. Night of the spadefoot toads childrenslitblogs weblog. Write descriptions of each characters traits, thoughts, feelings, words, and actions. I love the book im reading it in ela class and i love it im page forty something and its the second best book in the world. As bens obsession with saving the spadefoot toads habitat grows, his schoolwork and his relationships with his family and new friends suffer. Book chapters 110 learn with flashcards, games, and more for free. Hurter s spadefoot is not a protected species in texas and can be legally collected with a hunting license. North american spadefoot toads and their incredible fast. It is very similar to that of the eastern spadefoot s. Time for more spadefoot toads that is, members of the. Ben was passionate about something and took a stand for what they.
No children of great basin spadefoot spea intermontana found. Spadefoot toad, relatively smoothskinned amphibian of either the old world genus pelobates or of the genera scaphiopus and spea of north america. Discussion about bill harley s very cool novel night of the spadefoot toad. When his family moves from tucson, arizona to massachusetts, fifthgrader. Stout, plump body that is brown or yellowish brown. Unfortunately the book that my teacher gave me was not about excitement, action, or filled with adventures as i hoped, but the book night of the spadefoot toads was still an okay book by its standards. As ben s obsession with saving the spadefoot toads habitat grows, his schoolwork and his relationships with his family and new friends suffer. As my teacher gave my class and i a book to read as a class, i thought it was a book filled with excitement, action, and full of adventures. Jul 30, 2009 the english name spadefoot is a reference to the sharp spade or tubercle found on the hind feet which are used for digging into the ground. This book touched my fifth graders as we read the book together. Specifically, the voice of hunter s spadefoot is repeated about every five seconds. Arkansas frogs and toads frogs and toads are bellwethers for the environment. There may be some green on the sides, and the back and sides might have tiny reddish warts.
Most spadefoots are a lowland species that occupy dry areas such as sand dunes, and cultivated land, but those from north africa and north america can be found in deserts, such as couch s spadefoot toad scaphiopus couchii from arizona. A woman around the beginning of the last century who was in love with frogs wrote a wonderful book on frogs and toads. Readers questions about night of the spadefoot toads. All spadefoot toads are classified in the family pelobatidae. Much to adams delight, the friend of barnabas proves to be a bookseller, to whom he proceeds to offer his sermons. The call is repeated approximately every 2 seconds 1014. North american spadefoot toads and their incredible fastmetamorphosing, polymorphic tadpoles. But just when it seems things cant get any worse, ben finds a way to meet his responsibilities to the people around him and demonstrates the importance of even the smallest efforts to save the earth s. Book design by melanie mcmahon ives printed in the united states of america 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 first edition library of congress cataloginginpublication data harley, bill, 1954night of the spadefoot toads bill harley. But just when it seems things cant get any worse, ben finds a way to meet his responsibilities to the people around him and demonstrates the importance of even the smallest efforts to save the. Together they explore the varied habitats on her rural property, and she introduces him to the elusive and endangered eastern spadefoot toads that make their home there.
What are the adaptations of a western spadefoot toadss. He sees a picture of the spadefoot toad in the book. Unfortunately the book that my teacher gave me was not about excitement, action, or filled with adventures as i hoped, but the book night of the spadefoot toads was still an okay book by it s standards. They are opportunistic hunters and will eat anything they can subdue. The specific epithet couchii is in honor of american naturalist darius nash couch, who collected the first specimen while on a personal expedition to northern mexico to collect plant, mineral, and animal specimens for the smithsonian institution. The eastern spadefoot is a robust, relatively smoothskinned toad that reaches a body length of up to 2. The following recordings were made at night in early march at shallow rain pools shown below in daylight in butte county on a very windy night. The hind legs are short, and the underside of each hind foot has a distinct, wedgeshaped spade, hence its name. Hind limbs have single, sickleshaped tubercle, or spade on inner surface wedgeshaped tubercle in spea. I have noticed that at times they even finished each other s calls. No information specific to montana plains spadefoot is available.
Night of the spadefoot toads theme graphic organizers. The male s mating call is a short, explosive, lowpitched wank. The call of a geat basin spadefoot is a loud short note ducklike snoring sound. Night of the spadefoot toads in chapter 11 pages 59 what. The great basin spadefoot spea intermontana is a species of toad in the family. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
Vertical pupils and skin covered with many small warts. It is found in western california usa and northwestern baja california mexico. In it she says if you place a frog and a toad on a table they will both hop. Western spadefoot toads and southern spadefoot toads lack a cranial boss a ridge between the eyes. While their tadpoles have numerous predators, adults are able to produce skin secretions. Vortex formation and foraging in polyphenic spadefoot toad. Plains spadefoot toad toads are smarter than frogs. The desert spadefoot toad notaden nichollsi is a species of frog in the family limnodynastidae. Juveniles of spadefoot toads spea bombifrons and s. Distinguished from the eastern kimberley s northern spadefoot notaden melanoscaphus by the unpigmented inner metatarsal tubercle.
Despite the name, the spadefoot toad is actually more reminiscent of a frog in its. Given how little time they spend above the surface, the spadefoot toad is a master of conservation. In texas, scaphiopus hurterii is found in the eastern half of the state. In europe three different species occur, the common spadefoot pelobates fuscus, western spadefoot pelobates cultripes and the eastern spadefoot pelobates syriacus. Books like this show the obstacles characters face to give justice to the environment and the life that lives in it. Ben s adjustment to his new environment is not going well until he unexpectedly finds a kindred spirit in his eccentric fifthgrade science teacher, mrs. Spadefoot toad definition of spadefoot toad by the free. Dec 26, 2017 as my teacher gave my class and i a book to read as a class, i thought it was a book filled with excitement, action, and full of adventures. Northern arid zone of wa, excluding the pilbara and kimberley regions. Tibbets invites ben to explore with her the natural. Choose a chapter or page from the book such as page 50 to examine from the stance of a writer, noticing the details, descriptions, and very specific words an author has chosen. Great basin spadefoot, great basin spadefoot toad, mexican spadefoot. Hurter s spadefoot toad or hurter s spadefoot scaphiopus hurteri is a species of american spadefoot toad family scaphiopodidae found in the south central united states texas, louisiana, arkansas, oklahoma.
Night of the spadefoot toad chapter 8 modified text. Night of the spadefoot toads theme graphic organizers this pdf file includes 5 graphic organizers that were created to go along with the readygen lesson 9 for the night of the spadefoot toads. They also show a uniform iridescence in their pigmentation. No other adult frog or toad in montana has a combination of vertical pupils. Aug 30, 2016 spadefoot toads chapter 4 does golden gryphons. Males call at night while floating on the water, often in large aggregations. The adult spadefoot toad is an opportunistic hunter that can subsist on. Night of the spadefoot toads in chapter 11 pages 59. Night of the spadefoot toads character analysis by lisa. Apr 11, 2014 the mating call of an eastern spadefoot toad. Several eastern spadefoot toads call in a shallow depression in downtown gainesville, fl on june 26, 2012. The new mexico spadefoot toad is found in mexico and the u. The great basin spadefoot toad seems to prefer pools with bare mud or grasses and forbs, and is not generally found in or alongside large lakes and rivers or wetlands where fish are present john hall, pers. Hurters spadefoot toad or hurters spadefoot scaphiopus hurteri is a species of american spadefoot toad family scaphiopodidae found in the south central united states texas, louisiana, arkansas, oklahoma.
Tibbets invites ben to explore with her the natural habitats on her rural property, where she introduces him to the endangered spadefoot toads that inhabit a vernal pool. This file includes a character analysis chart for the major characters in night of the spadefoot toads the chart allows students to analyze six of the characters by assigning a character trait as well as finding evidence in the text which supports the trait. In striving to enrich the lives of all readers, teachingbooks supports the first amendment and celebrates the right to read. This is a second recording of the advertisement calls of one great basin spadefoot at close range with a second in the background. The eastern spadefoot is a stout, toadlike amphibian with large, protruding eyes, vertically elliptical pupils, short legs, and large feet. This toad is very similar to the eastern spadefoot, so refer to that description. The following recordings were made at night in early march at shallow rain pools shown below.