Fowler's Toad

Fowler's Toad

Anaxyrus fowleri

Silhouette: Michael Scroggie, from original photograph by Gary M. Stolz, USFWS (original photograph in public domain). · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Washington

In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%

147 Verified sightings at Washington
61 In all 2 parks From 2019 to 2026
June Best month
☀️🌙 Day & Night When it's spotted

About the Fowler's Toad

Anaxyrus fowleri, Fowler's toad, is a species of toad in the family Bufonidae. The species is native to North America, where it occurs in much of the eastern United States and parts of adjacent Canada. It was previously considered a subspecies of Woodhouse's toad (Anaxyrus woodhousii, formerly Bufo woodhousii).

The specific name, fowleri, is in honor of naturalist Samuel Page Fowler (1800–1888) from Massachusetts, who was a founder of the Essex County Natural History Society, which later became the Essex Institute. Fowler's toad is usually brown, grey, olive green and rust red in color with darkened warty spots. If the toad has a pale stripe on its back, it is an adult. The belly is usually uniformly whitish except for one dark spot. The male may be darker in overall color than the female.

The adult toad is typically 5 to 9.5 cm (2.0 to 3.7 in) in head-body length. The tadpole is oval with a long tail and upper and lower fins, and is 1 to 1.4 cm (0.39 to 0.55 in) long. Body size is found to be dependent on the toad's environment. Higher temperatures produce smaller sized toads due to an increase in ectothermic metabolism with decreased resources.... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Advertisement call0:15

United States · 2015

© Chris Harrison · XC890998 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Recording1:04

United States · 2026

© Wayne Longbottom · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Recording0:21

Canada · 2025

© Glenn Barrett · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Great Smoky Mountains National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
2 Shenandoah National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 New York City 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
2 Washington 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
3 Philadelphia 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
4 Baltimore 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 National Zoological Park 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
2 Cape May County Park & Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
3 Indianapolis Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
4 North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island 🇺🇸 United States In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Fowler's Toad in Washington?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Fowler's Toad sighting in Washington on a given day, based on 147 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 12th most-seen of the 18 amphibians we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Fowler's Toad in Washington?

April to September

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Fowler's Toad in Washington on a given day, against under 5% in October to March, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Fowler's Toad?

Between 8 and 11 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Fowler's Toad sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.

Is Washington the best place to see a Fowler's Toad?

Among the best

Of the 4 cities where we can rate Fowler's Toad sightings, Washington ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in New York City (United States, about 10%).

Where does the Fowler's Toad sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Fowler's Toad is recorded against all the amphibians logged in Washington (147 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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