This year's animal is the common toad, which will soon wake from hibernation and begin its annual migration to spawning grounds. The toad is a slow crawler whose chances of survival are reduced year after year not only by the loss of suitable habitats, but also by traffic on the roads. The Nature Conservation Agency therefore invites both experienced and new volunteers to sign up in good time for the campaign “Mission – TOAD. Save the prince!” and help amphibians cross the roads safely.

Even now, before the active migration begins, we invite everyone interested to sign up for the campaign by filling in the form in the website section “Sign up as a volunteer toad rescuer!”, to read the handbook and to be ready over the coming weeks to join the toad rescue work at a place and time that suits them.

During the active migration period, the volunteers' main task is to survey their chosen stretch of the migration route and carry the toads across the road. The work requires simple equipment – clean gloves, a clean bucket or other container, a torch during the evening hours and a high-visibility vest.

The rescue work is not difficult, but it is a responsible job and requires following safety rules near the roads, as well as handling the amphibians with care. The first step is to find the stretch of amphibian migration route nearest to your home (24 in Vidzeme, 15 in Kurzeme, seven in Latgale and five in Zemgale), sign up as a toad rescuer, keep an eye out for further correspondence by email and help the amphibians over the coming weeks. The precise location of the migration points is available on the website mentioned above.

This campaign not only improves the overall survival prospects of Latvia's toad population, but also helps gather data for public monitoring. In order to be able to assess in future how Latvia's toad population is faring overall, it is essential that volunteers record and submit the numbers of toads rescued and killed.

Amphibian migration in Latvia usually begins when the air temperature reaches at least +5 °C and damp, rainy weather sets in. Migration can begin very suddenly in one or all regions of Latvia at once, either within the next few days or in the weeks that follow. Volunteers' involvement in this campaign is vitally important, because without human help many amphibians will never reach their spawning grounds at all.

The common toad spends the winter in forests, parks and farmyards, but in spring it heads for its spawning grounds – bodies of water. Since in many places roads cross these animals' historic migration routes, crossing the road becomes the most dangerous stage in the toads' life cycle.

Toads are an important part of the ecosystem – they help regulate populations of insects, molluscs and other invertebrates, while themselves serving as food for many predatory animals. A decline in their numbers can affect the whole balance of nature and biological diversity.