Woodhouse’s Toad, Makoshika State Park, Montana
This was a new species for us that we discovered in Makoshika State Park, Montana. Here in Iowa this toad can be found only in the very western part of the state, while they are not uncommon in many other states further west. I did what I always try to do, take a few “safety shots” from the side and slightly above for later identification and then work with the critter from a better perspective. Lying on my stomach and having the camera on eye level with the toad leads to a much better photo that puts the viewer into the world of this animal. I don’t move an animal to a different place for a better shot and dealing with the grass for an unobstructed view is part of the challenge to make the click. The Nikkor 24-120, f/4 was the lens of choice because it allowed me to get much closer to the toad (minimum focus distance 0.45 meter / 1.5 ft). The 70-200, f/4 has more focal length but the minimum focus distance is 1 meter / 3.28’ ft. Less distance equals fewer grass stems. It was an easy decision…
Woodhouse’s Toads are mostly nocturnal and feed on insects and small invertebrates. It wasn’t quite dark at 6PM but maybe the toad was on its way to a new hunting ground. No matter what it is, but we are always happy to find a new animal species that hasn’t been on our radar.