A new colony of over 800 rare natterjack toad tadpoles has been moved to Norfolk, from an RSPB nature reserve in Bedfordshire. The tadpoles have been transferred to Norfolk Wildlife Trust's reserve at Grimston Warren.
Natterjacks are identified by the yellow stripe running along their back. They require a specialist environment with bare ground or very short vegetation for hunting insects such as beetles. During daylight hours the nightlovers hide away under rocks or rest in their burrows underground.
The amphibians are smaller than the common toad. They are nocturnal and are spotted much less often than they are heard, as their mating calls can travel further than half a mile. They breed in shallow, warm pools so sand dunes, heathland, and saltmarshes are the ideal environment for them.
