12 March: Toad Day

Today is Toad Day at the Centre for Wildlife gardening in London in 2023. 10 things you might not know about toads:

1. Toads belong to the family Bufonidae, and there are more than 300 species of toad.
2. How do you know you’re looking at a toad rather than a Frog? A toad has dry, warty skin and they walk rather than jump.
3. Frogs live in and around Water but toads live on land and only go back to the water to mate.
4. It’s also possible to tell their spawn apart. Frogs lay their eggs in clumps while toad eggs are more like a string which can be up to 7m long.
5. It’s a myth that touching a toad gives you warts, but they do secrete poison from their skin which can cause an allergic reaction. The poison is to deter predators. Some species pee on themselves to put predators off. So while you won’t get warts, it’s still advisable to wash your hands after touching a toad. Toad poison is used in shamanic practices in Mexico.
6. A Group of Toads is Called a “Knot”.
7. What do they eat? Pretty much anything which is small enough, including caterpillars, beetles, Slugs, Spiders, Snails, woodlice, Ants, newts, young frogs and even small Mice.
8. Many toads eat their own skin to cover their tracks from predators.
9. A toadstone is a mythical gem that was thought to be an antidote to poison. It was thought that such a stone could be found inside a toad’s head. What they actually are is the fossilised teeth of prehistoric fish.
10. Probably the best known fictional toad is Mr. Toad, of Toad Hall, thought to have been inspired by Kenneth Grahame’s son Alistair. There’s also a toad in Futurama, called Hypnotoad which has pulsating, multicoloured eyes, and emits a loud buzzing noise. It can hypnotise almost any living thing at will, including large groups. The Hypnotoad first appeared in The Day the Earth Stood Stupid, in which it hypnotised a flock of sheep so they’d herd themselves into a pen and close the door behind them, and went on to hypnotise the panel of judges in order to win a pet show and then the audience so they would approve of the decision.

Character Birthday

Burdock, aka Riley Wilkes. A computer nerd from Infinitus. His power is creating explosions and repulsing people. He met his partner Dandelion, a supermodel, when he set up a website to put computer experts in touch with people who needed their skills. She needed someone to deal with online trolls and fake news about her life. This proved to be an ongoing requirement and resulted in the two of them falling in love. He gained his power through wormhole travel when he followed Power Blaster through after Dandelion was kidnapped, wanting to help rescue her. His story is told in the Raiders Trilogy.

Closing the Circle

A stable wormhole has been established between Earth and Infinitus. Power Blaster and his friends can finally go home.

Desi Troyes is still at large on Earth - Power Blaster has vowed to bring him to justice. His wedding to Shanna is under threat as the Desperadoes launch an attempt to rescue their leader. Someone from Power Blaster's past plays an unexpected and significant role in capturing Troyes.

The return home brings its own challenges. Not everyone can return to the life they left behind, and for some, there is unfinished business to be dealt with before they can start anew.

Ben Cole in particular cannot resume his old life as a surgeon because technology no longer works around him. He plans a new life in Classica, away from technology. Shanna hears that there could be a way to reverse his condition and sets out to find it, putting herself in great danger. She doesn't know that she is about to uncover the secret of Power Blaster's mysterious past.

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