More than 1,000 toads may have died after a reservoir important to the local ecosystem was drained by a water company, conservationists in north Wales have said.
Volunteers at Wrexham Toad Patrols help toads returning to the Nant-y-Ffrith reservoir on the Llandegla moors in breeding season, this year assisting 1,500 of the amphibians to cross busy roads to help protect the declining species.
The group said it was “shocked, angry and heartbroken” to discover the reservoir was drained by Hafren Dyfrdwy over the Easter weekend, a few weeks before the toads were expected to leave the site.
“Why now – at the height of spring, when wildlife depends on these waters for breeding, feeding and nesting?” Teri Davies said in a social media post. “We understand the need for the work, but not the timing. Waiting just a few more weeks could have made all the difference.”
Nant-y-Ffrith, near Wrexham, is home to birds including the great crested grebe and coot. Sedge warblers, reed buntings, lapwings and curlews live near adjacent streams, fields and a wooded valley.
Toads return to the same breeding sites year on year and do not relocate, Davies said.
“With the reservoir gone, they may not survive. Birds like curlews and lapwings have lost vital breeding and feeding grounds … Frogs, newts, insects and even reported otters will all feel the impact, with effects rippling through the entire ecosystem,” Davies added.
Hafren Dyfrdwy, which operates in north-east and mid Wales, said it drained the reservoir to carry out “essential safety improvements”.
A spokesperson called the situation “concerning for the local community” and said it wanted to “identify ways to put things right for the future”.
The company was “currently reviewing what has occurred alongside our ecologists on site”, they added.
Common toad populations in the UK have declined by 41% in the past 40 years, according to the wildlife charity Froglife.
