Common toads migrate to ancestral breeding ponds each spring, crossing roads in large numbers and suffering enormous mortality that drives population decline.
Toads killed by vehicles suffer immediate traumatic death or prolonged death from injury. The scale of road mortality during spring migration concentrates welfare harm into a brief window each year when populations are most exposed. Toad tunnels under roads with drift fencing have proven effective in eliminating mortality at specific crossing points. Volunteer bucket brigade schemes demonstrate that community action can directly reduce welfare harm at individual crossing sites.