It's the frog days of summer inside Billy Bishop Airport as tiny amphibians invade terminal
Instead of the dog days, it's the toad days of summer at Billy Bishop Airport. Travellers catching a flight these days might find themselves having to wait at their gate with some unexpected guests.
Over the past two days, dozens of toads have been spotted hopping around the terminal.
"There are probably a few dozen of these little frogs and we suspect the high water in the area may be a contributing factor," Sarah Sutton, communications manager for Ports Toronto, told CBC Toronto in an email, referring to the toads as frogs.
Amanda Bennett, secretary at the Canadian Herpetological Society, confirmed to CBC that the amphibians are in fact American Toads (Anaxyrus americanus).
Toads can thrive in a wide variety of environments, as long as there is water nearby, said Tanya Pulfer, conservation science manager at Ontario Nature.
The high number of toads is likely due to the very wet year Toronto has had, she added.
The toads can be spotted entering the gates first thing in the morning.
"Our Wildlife Management Team is taking great care to remove the [toads] from the gates and relocate them to a safe location outside the airport," said Sutton.
Staff are picking up the toads by hand and placing them in buckets to be brought back where they came from — the wetlands south of the airport, according to Sutton.
"Our priority now is to find where the [toads] are entering the building, blocking this access and then discouraging the [toads] from approaching the building in the first place," said Sutton.
