Eastern Spadefoot

A stout, toadlike amphibian with big, protruding eyes, vertically elliptical pupils, short legs and large feet. There is no raised area between the eyes. Overall color is light brown to yellow-brown. Head, back and upperparts of legs are mottled with dark brown. The amount of dark brown on the back may be great enough to form 2 or 3 light yellow-brown stripes in a pattern resembling a lyre. The belly is pale white to gray. The inner surface of each hind foot has a sickle-shaped spur or “spade.” Call is a quick series of coarse “wank, wank, wank” or “errrah, errrah, errrah” sounds repeated every few seconds. Some say it sounds like a young crow.