Inland, where no water is to lie found, we shall meet with a creature of
an olive colour--the back covered with tubercles--and with a blunt nose.
It might easily be mistaken for a toad, though it is a veritable frog.
Even in winter, before the snow has disappeared, we may see the hardy
little creature making its way over the frozen surface of the ground.
At the breeding season, however, it returns, like other frogs, to the
water. It resides for the chief part of the year in sandy districts, in
which it forms burrows, about six inches in depth, by means of a flat,
sharp-edged spur, with which it is furnished. Into these burrows it
makes its way backwards, very much as a crab crawls into its hole when
seeking shelter from danger. There it sits, with its head poked out,
watching for passing prey.