We recently had a rainy Sunday morning at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park.  Really rainy.  It was raining so hard that the motion sensor doors to the Visitors Center wouldn’t close.  They would start to close, then there would be extra large drips in front of the motion sensors and they would pop back open again.  We had so few visitors that several of us were standing at the desk making fake bets on whether or not the doors would close all the way.  Close, closer, then pop – back open again!

As I was watching the doors, I noticed that toads kept hopping across the front of the door area.  This is unusual behavior.  Although toads live in the flower beds to the left of the doors, they don’t usually commute to the others side of the doors.  Or maybe I just don’t see them because the doors are usually closed.

Some of the toads looked like they were thinking about coming into the Visitors Center.  We do get the occasional toad coming in to check us out.  I always try to get them out of the Visitors Center as quickly as possible.  Visitors might step on them which wouldn’t be a good thing for anyone.

I think the toads are eastern American toads.  They are very common in Kentucky and can live most anywhere that has heavy vegetation.  I’m not much of an amphibian expert, so they could be something else.  I’m also not sure of the difference between frogs and toads except that frogs generally live in the water all the time and toads generally live on land.  Usually.  With plenty of exceptions.

Anyway, on the rainy Sunday, the toads were hopping across the doorway with the doors  opening and almost shutting.  At one point, I noticed one of the toads had hopped onto the rail that the doors slide along.  I didn’t want the poor little thing to get mushed, so I headed over to shoo it away.

When I got to it, I noticed the small toad had two heads.  Looking more closely, it looked like two heads but just one body.  I could see one set of front legs and one set of back legs.  Then I realized it was two toads mating.  In fact, there were several toad couples mating in front of the door in the rain puddles.  The rain had triggered their mating instinct and they were going for it.  I’m not sure where they thought they were going to lay their eggs.  As far as I know, there isn’t any standing water near the Visitors Center.  But the toads were definitely preparing for tadpoles.

Watching the toads brightened an otherwise very gloomy and rainy Sunday morning at work.  The habits of even the smallest wildlife can be fascinating.