# Common toad (*Bufo bufo*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/bufo-bufo  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The common toad (Bufo bufo) is an amphibian in the frogs and toads subgroup, belonging to the order Anura and the family Bufonidae. It is a small, nocturnal invertivore whose main foods are arthropods, and it uses aquatic and terrestrial microhabitats. Adults have a representative body mass of 164.8 g and a body length of up to 15 cm, with a lifespan of up to 40 years. It lays eggs, with clutches of 5,332 to 10,000 eggs, develops through a larval stage, and is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 164.8 g |
| Length | up to 15 cm |
| Lifespan | up to 40 years |
| Diet | Invertivore |
| Main food | arthropods |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Young per litter or clutch | 5,332 – 10,000 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Migration | Migratory |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Amphibia
- order: Anura
- family: Bufonidae
- genus: Bufo
- species: *Bufo bufo* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Batrachus buffo*, *Bombinator ventricosus*, *Bufavus meneghinii*, *Buffo strumosus*, *Buffo vulgaris*, *Bufo alpinus*, *Bufo bufo bufo*, *Bufo carbunculus*, *Bufo cinereus*, *Bufo cinereus hybridus*, *Bufo cinereus medius*, *Bufo cinereus minor*, *Bufo communis*, *Bufo commutatus*, *Bufo ferruginosus*, *Bufo minutus*, *Bufo palmarum*, *Bufo roeselii*, *Bufo rouselei*, *Bufo rubeta*, *Bufo spelaeus*, *Bufo tuberculosus*, *Bufo ventricosus*, *Bufo vulgaris*, *Bufo vulgaris acutirostris*, *Bufo vulgaris cinereus*, *Bufo vulgaris obtusirostris*, *Engystoma ventricosus*, *Pegaeus bufo*, *Phryne vulgaris*, *Rana acephala*, *Rana bufo*, *Rana pluvialis*, *Rana rubeta*, *Rana scorodesma*, *Rana ventricosa*, *Rana vulgaris*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the common toad?

The common toad is an amphibian in the frogs and toads subgroup. It belongs to the order Anura and the family Bufonidae.

### How big is the common toad?

The common toad has a body length of up to 15 cm and a representative adult body mass of 164.8 g, which places it in the small size class.

### What does the common toad eat?

The common toad is an invertivore whose main foods are arthropods. Its trophic level is carnivore.

### Is the common toad endangered?

No. The common toad is listed as Least Concern (LC) in the global IUCN assessment, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the common toad live?

The common toad has a lifespan of up to 40 years.

### How many eggs does the common toad lay?

The common toad lays clutches of 5,332 to 10,000 eggs, with a representative value of 7,666, and its young develop through a larval stage.

### When is the common toad active?

The common toad is nocturnal. It uses aquatic and terrestrial microhabitats.

### Who named the common toad?

The scientific name Bufo bufo carries the authority (Linnaeus, 1758).

## Sources

- [AmphiBIO, a global database for amphibian ecological traits](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.4644424.v5), CC BY 4.0, v1. Oliveira, B.F., São-Pedro, V.A., Santos-Barrera, G., Penone, C. & Costa, G.C. (2017) AmphiBIO, a global database for amphibian ecological traits. Scientific Data 4: 170123. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.123. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.4644424.v5
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Common toad (Bufo bufo). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/bufo-bufo