The Fowler's Toad is tan to gray colored with several smallish dark brown paired spots on the back. The dark dorsal spots are usually paired (across the mid-dorsal line), especially anteriorly. There is typically an elongated spot above each eye. Most spots will contain 2 or more warts. In some specimens, the spots may appear green or reddish. It has a light-colored mid-dorsal stripe. While this species usually displays an immaculate belly, many specimens have a single dark spot on the chest.
Adults normally 50-75 mm (2-3 inches) in snout-vent length. The largest Kansas specimen is a female (FHSM 11768) from Cherokee County with a snout-vent length of 62 mm (21⁄16 inches) collected by Travis W. Taggart and Richard Hayes on 19 July 2005. The maximum length throughout the range is 95mm (3¾ inches) (Powell et al. 2016).
Not known from Kansas.
While long suspected to occur in Kansas (Smith, 1950, 1956; Collins, 1992; Johnson, 2000), only recently have specimens been discovered that are definitely assignable to this taxon, (Taggart, 2006). The earliest existing specimens (BYU 8417-8; 9967) are from 1947.
Rundquist and Collins (1977) considered Anaxyrus woodhousii to be '... abundant in the Cherokee Plain portions of the county and less so in the Ozark Plateau...' and '... we can make no clear distinction as to subspecies [B. w. woodhousei [sic.] vs. B. w. fowleri] with the specimens at hand.'
The status of Bufo fowleri as distinct from Bufo woodhousii was formerly controversial(see Green (1996) and Sullivan et al. (1996) for discussion of the issue, and Meacham (1962), for a presentation of the evidence and delimitation of the taxon).
Most recently Masta et al. (2002), using molecular evidence, suggested that Bufo fowleri is most closely related to (and molecularly paraphyletic to) Bufo terrestris, not the closest relative of Bufo woodhousii, and together with Bufo terrestris forming the sister taxon of Bufo americanus plus Bufo woodhousii. According to these authors, Bufo fowleri is composed of three distinctive clades, which require additional study as to their specific status.
Bufo fowleri is known to hybridize with Bufo woodhousii and Bufo americanus in other parts of its range, in which case the offspring may show characteristics of only one or both parent species. There is no evidence of hybridization in Kansas.
References
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