The New Mexico spadefoot toad (Spea multiplicata) is a species of American spadefoot toad found in the southwestern United States and Mexico. Like other species of spadefoot toad, they get their name from a distinctive spade-like projections on their hind legs which enable them to dig in sandy soils. Spea multiplicata can be identified by its wedge-shaped spade. Some sources also refer to the species as the Mexican spadefoot toad, desert spadefoot toad or southern spadefoot toad.
Description: The New Mexico spadefoot toad grows from 1.5 to 2.5 inches in length, and has a round body, with relatively short legs. They are green, to grey, to brown, usually reflecting the soil color of their native habitat, often with black and orange colored speckling on their back, and a white underside. They have large eyes, with vertical pupils.
Habitat: This species is frequently found in desert grassland, shortgrass plains, creosote bush, sagebrush, and semi-desert shrublands, mixed grassland/chaparral, pinyon-juniper and pine-oak woodland and open pine forest. Similar to other Pelobatid species, this species is considered opportunistic. It burrows underground or occupies rodent burrows when inactive. Eggs and larvae develop in temporary pools and ponds formed by heavy rains.
Range: Range extends from southeastern Utah, southern Colorado, and northern Oklahoma south through Arizona, New Mexico, and western Texas in the United States, to Guerrero and Oaxaca in Mexico. Elevational range extends up to about 2,470 meters in some areas.
Diet: Metamorphosed toads eat various small arthropods. Larvae probably eat suspended matter, organic debris, algae, plant tissue, and small aquatic invertebrates. There are two larval morphs, a carnivorous one that subsists principally on fairy shrimp, and an omnivorous one that consumes fewer fairy shrimp and more detritus and algae; morphology depends on diet.
Reproduction: Breeding takes place in temporary pools left by the rain. Eggs laid in large masses, often hatch in as little as 48 hours. The tadpoles are forced to metamorphose quickly, before the water dries up. S. multiplicata tadpoles exhibit phenotypic plasticity. Tadpoles that ingest fairy shrimp, when present, may express a novel carnivore phenotype. This novel phenotype increases the rate of development, helping the tadpoles to escape drying ponds more rapidly.
Status: Globally it is classified as a "Species of Least Concern". In Utah it is classified as Critically Imperiled and in Oklahoma it is classified as Vulnerbale. Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, & Texas have it classified as Secure or Apparently Secure.
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Disclaimer: ITIS taxonomy is based on the latest scientific consensus available, and is provided as a general reference source for interested parties. However, it is not a legal authority for statutory or regulatory purposes. While every effort has been made to provide the most reliable and up-to-date information available, ultimate legal requirements with respect to species are contained in provisions of treaties to which the United States is a party, wildlife statutes, regulations, and any applicable notices that have been published in the Federal Register. For further information on U.S. legal requirements with respect to protected taxa, please contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
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