Short trips

Land animals tend to migrate smaller distances than birds or sea creatures. But even some of our slowest movers have to make regular annual journeys.

Every spring, common toads make the short but risky trip from the woods where they spend winter to the ponds where they breed. They travel at night to avoid predators, but many dangers lie in their path – including roads. Today some road signs warn motorists to look out for toads crossing.

Even moles have to migrate when their soil conditions change. If the soil becomes waterlogged during a wet spring, earthworms die. This deprives moles of their food – so they have to tunnel to new drier ground. If the soil dries out during a hot summer, moles find it hard to dig their tunnels and again they are forced to move on.