Hundreds of toads saved by night patrol team

More than 1,000 amphibians at risk of being killed by traffic have been rescued by a special patrol group, volunteers say.

Patrols from conservation charity Froglife said volunteers in north Cornwall saved 960 toads, 63 palmate newts and 10 frogs during the mating season in February and earlier this month.

Andy Smart, who set up the night time patrol in Hawksland, near Wadebridge, said they rescued on average one amphibian every three minutes of patrolling.

They said they also had to deal with 133 dead toads and five dead newts - about 12% of the amphibians they found during the spawning season.

The 19 volunteers, which included five schoolchildren, clocked up 54 hours between them over 32 nights.

Two patrols were cancelled for safety reasons due to wind and rain, the group said.

Smart said more volunteers signed up following an appeal for help and he already had helpers signed up for next year.

"It's been a very successful set of patrols, with over 1,000 amphibians saved, which is great," he said.

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