The Houston toad’s natural habitat has shrunk to the point that it no longer includes the species’ namesake, with the toad last seen in the Houston area in the early 1970s.
More than 1 million Houston toad eggs have been released at Bastrop State Park as part of a renewed effort to recover the native species’ population in the region, according to the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.
Following a 32,000-acre wildfire in Bastrop County in 2011, the Houston toad population declined and eventually disappeared from the state park over a period of five years, according to the state wildlife department. The state agency said the recent release of eggs was done in collaboration with the Houston Zoo, the Amphibian and Reptile Conservancy, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Since the fire, two other reintroduction attempts were made, in 2015 and 2019. The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department said the egg release earlier this spring was the largest to date…