Another of the spring ephemerals, photographed yesterday in my woods. Trillium blooms in huge drifts under the beeches and sugar maples; they’re wild – I did not plant them. I only have the larger white ones (Trillium grandiflorum) but other members of the family bloom in dark red, “painted”, and I believe, yellow. Alternate names include ‘wake robin’ and ‘stinking Benjamin’.
And here’s a big bruiser of a toad I uncovered in the scrap lumber pile behind my shed. It is the biggest toad I’ve ever seen – a good 3-1/2″ across. He fully covered the 2 x 4 he was sitting on when I found him. I believe he’s the common eastern American toad (Bufo americanus americanus). What’s most amazing to me about this photo is the perfection of his camouflage against the weathered wood and last fall’s dead leaves.
These toads secret a toxin from glands on the neck, behind each eye. If you handle them, you need to wash your hands afterward, and avoid touching your mouth or eyes in the meantime. Pets who try to bite or even just lick the toad will develop nausea and vomiting – I’ve had that happen on a couple of occasions with my own dogs. Down south, the toads are even more toxic and I’ve read that an encounter with one can cause the death of a pet within 3o minutes or so.
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