Biggest success for toad crossing

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A record number of toads has been saved by a scheme which stops the creatures being squashed by traffic on their way to their breeding lakes.

Charlcombe Lane near Bath is closed each year during the peak breeding season in late February and March.

Volunteers then gather the toads up in buckets and carry them across the road.

In 2003, the first year of the scheme, 678 toads, 94 frogs and 67 newts were helped. This year, the numbers rose to 1,991 toads, 568 frogs and 289 newts.

A spokeswoman for Bath and North East Somerset Council said: "This is a great result as amphibians and reptiles are having a difficult time and nationally numbers are decreasing as land is developed reducing places where they can live and breed and lethal diseases are on the increase."