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Plains spadefoot toad (Spea bombifrons), Wind Cave National Park, 2014.

The plains spadefoot toad is nocturnal and secretive, only emerging during rains or for the moist springtime. They spend dry seasons in estivation, a state of dormancy similar to hibernation & marked by inactivity and a lowered metabolic rate. Estivation is important because it helps the toad, which is an amphibian, avoid damage from high temperatures and desiccation while also allowing its physiological state to be rapidly reversed to the animal's normal state when opportunity arises. Spadefoot toads got their common name from a spade-like projection on their hind legs which allows them to dig into sandy soils.

U.S. National Park Service

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Wind Cave National Park, Code: WICA

National Park Service Facebook Photos

Title: Wind Cave National Park
URL: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wind-Cave-National-Park/127899503922510?fref=ts

20140730

07/30/2014

Public Can View

Organization: Wind Cave National Park
Address: 26611 US Highway 385, Hot Springs, SD 57747-6027

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