July 14, 2026 – The Belgian city of Peer has created new habitat for the common spadefoot toad on the outskirts of the city, and introduced juveniles there for the first time on July 14 in an attempt to set up a new population of the endangered amphibian, the Flemish nature and forestry agency said.
The toad, also known as the garlic toad, scientific name Pelobates fuscus, until recently was limited to two populations in Belgium, including at a different location near Peer, according to Agentschap Natuur en Bos.
The agency and the Flemish government’s Research Institute for Nature and Forest have been working together to reintroduce the toad, taking eggs and raising them to the stage of larvae and then juveniles, for release at several locations in Flanders.
The city of Peer, in northeastern Belgium, ordered the creation of two additional ponds at the Luizelheuvel area, an agricultural plot that has been extensively managed since the mid-1980s, according to the agency. The soil around the ponds was loosened to allow young toads to bury in, while the grassland around the ponds is grazed by cattle to keep the area open and suitable
“With targeted nature restoration projects like this, we are giving endangered species a future again,” Jo Brouns, the Flemish minister for environment and agriculture, said in a statement.
Brouns said the garlic toad is a protected species that can only survive if governments, farmers, researchers and nature organisations work together. “This project in Peer shows how this cooperation in the field delivers tangible results and at the same time strengthens the biodiversity in our open space.”