It is almost that time of year again, when users of the park may observe tiny toads crossing the paths in the park while on their walks. Here is a little bit of information about the Trail Hoppers program and why it is so important to the work that we do at the Park. As always, we are always looking for volunteers to help us count, so if you are interested, please fill out our VOLUNTEER FORM.
Minnekhada Regional Park contains a communal breeding site of the Western Toad and gather in large numbers at various stages of their life cycle. in 2014 The Coastal Painted Turtle Project started a toadlet monitoring count which identified crossing hotspots and toadlet mortalities. In partnership with Metro Vancouver informational brochures and seasonal signage were developed and implemented as a result of this work which is still used to encourage the public to use caution while recreating in the park during peak toadlet migration.
At Minnekhada Park toadlets emerge from the marsh by the thousands during the summer, coinciding with hiking season and peak park usage. This leaves the toadlets vulnerable to being trampled by park users and subject to vehicle mortality, particularly on Quarry Road. There is less currently known about impacts to adult toads during their spring migration because their migration occurs in the evening when the park is closed. Vehicle traffic in the area is likely low after dark offering the mature toads some protection against roadkill mortality. However road-killed breeding age toads have been observed anecdotally on the lane leading to Minnekhada Lodge from Oliver Road. This lane experiences isolated high traffic before and after private events at the Lodge which occur in the evening when adult toads are on the move.
There are also concerns that vehicle traffic on Quarry Road may increase as the area develops in preparation for the opening of Widgeon Marsh Regional Park and the proposed expansion of Gilley’s Quarry. That said, planned improvements and upgrades to Quarry Road may provide an opportunity for MPA to engage with decision makers to advocate for Western Toad conservation to be considered with the road design (toadlet underpass, fencing, etc.). In order to learn more about West Toad migration in Minnekhada Park, MPA developed and implemented a pilot toadlet monitoring program. The program builds on the 2015 work of the Coastal Partners in Conservation and considers other similar toadlet monitoring programs in British Columbia. 2023 was the inaugural year of the “Trail Hoppers” program and was made possible through financial support of the Metro Vancouver Regional Parks Foundation as part of the Fire Recovery fundraising campaign and with the organizational support of Metro Vancouver Regional Parks.
For a look at the full report on our 2023 Western Toadlet Monitoring Program , put together by some of our AMAZING volunteers, here’s a link to the FULL REPORT.