Everything Utah, every day.
Help Utahns understand their communities and hold government accountable. Our mission →
A small, round toad with gold eyes and a built-in spade on each hind foot.
Zion describes the Great Basin spadefoot as a small, rotund toad, gray or olive-green, with large golden-yellow eyes that have vertical pupils. A bump between the eyes shapes the head, and the skin is bumpy but less warty than that of a western toad. Adults measure about 4 to 6.5 centimeters.
The name comes from a small, black spade on the first toe of each hind foot, hardened tissue that helps the toad dig shelter. A spadefoot sitting still looks like a pebble, which helps it avoid predators. Like Zion's other amphibians, it must return to water to breed.
Older references spell the name Spea intermontanus, and the current Zion page uses Spea intermontana; that is one species with one page. Look without handling, and leave pools and loose ground undisturbed. The spade is a curiosity and not a reason to pick the animal up.
Rotund gray or olive toad with golden eyes and vertical pupils.
Watch where it is and leave pools and loose ground undisturbed.
Sure-footed sheep of the slickrock, restored to Zion after disappearing there.
Insect-eating flying mammals whose lives depend on suitable roosts, water and a safe seasonal cycle.
A diverse group of native predators best appreciated without handling or close-range identification attempts.