Chester Zoo Dear sir, is this a record?

[gentle lemur]

Today, Saturday May 22nd, at about 2pm in the afternoon, I saw ten (10) adult Mallorcan midwife toads in their enclosure at Chester. I think I am entitled to claim the Cheshire All-Comers Mallorcan midwife toad spotting record unless, of course, any one has ever done better.
In my previous 40 visits to Chester, I have seen a grand total of one adult toad and two toadlets (photos in the ZooChat gallery), so this represents a significant advance. Two ladies from the zoo herptile staff who passed by were amazed by the number showing themselves. One said she never saw so many when she was inside the enclosure. One of the toads was hidden so deeply in the ivy that the only things really visible were the two strands of white eggs that it was carrying.
I recommend all toad spotters to test their skill on a warm day in May, and I will be delighted to congratulate anyone who can beat my record

Alan

 

[bongorob]

I say you have a record, you beat my score by 10. I often see tadpoles but never any adults.

Congratulations. The zoo stock list shows a holding of 310, I often wonder where they hide themselves away.

 

[EvilKittie]

my current record was 2 adults and about 100 tadpoles

 

[gentle lemur]

I assume that most of the 310 are tadpoles, and that many are off-show. But my experience yesterday goes to show that it's always worth checking on the least visible species, because just occasionally you will be surprised. On the other hand I thought conditions would be ideal for watching the sand lizards, but I couldn't see a thing.

Alan