SUNRIVER – From warts to witches’ brew to cursed princes, there is no shortage of folklore surrounding the toad. But there has been a shortage of toads.

For one man in Sunriver, Jay Bowerman, just laying eyes on a plain old toad has become a sign of good fortune.

For him, this year’s toad census is cause for celebration.

He has tracked Sunriver’s dwindling Western toad population for the last 25 years. In the last five years, his counts have peaked at about 30, he said. And some years, his count has dipped down to two or three. This year, he has seen almost 100 toads in just two days.

”I just think toads are really appealing little creatures,” he said, grinning as he waded into a pond to examine a male toad Wednesday afternoon.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service does not classify the Western toad as threatened or endangered. But according to the U.S. Geological Survey, which actually runs the North American Amphibian Monitoring Program, amphibians are in a worldwide decline. Scientists are concerned, because they don’t know what impact the decline will have. In his book ”A Natural History of Amphibians,” biologist Robert Stebbins estimates that the Western toad was, until recently, the most common amphibian in the northwestern states. So even a spike in the population at a Sunriver pond is encouraging to some scientists.

Bowerman, 61, spent most of Tuesday and Wednesday wading quietly through Lake Penhollow, a man-made holding pond for treated water from the Sunriver wastewater plant.

To his delight, Bowerman spotted about 40 pairs of Western toads mating. He also saw evidence – long strings of fertilized eggs – that another seven pairs had mated before he arrived.

”This is way more than we’ve seen anywhere else in modern times,” he said.

Some scientists think an increase in ultraviolet rays threatens global toad populations. Bowerman said he is not sure what is causing the decline of toads in Sunriver. He said traffic is one major threat, as toads often have to cross busy roads to reach suitable mating grounds.

Bowerman received his master’s degree in amphibian cytology from the University of Oregon. He now volunteers full time at the Sunriver Nature Center and is currently conducting research, along with Christopher Pearl, a biologist for the U.S. Geological Survey, on Western toad populations.

Usually during the first warm, rainy spell of the year, the toads make their way from their woodland homes to ponds where they mate and lay eggs, Bowerman said.

”They go to the ponds because, like most amphibians, they lay their eggs in the water. And so they go to the ponds for love,” he said.

Bowerman’s romanticism shines through when he speaks – always fondly – of the Western toad.

”They’re extremely handsome creatures, if you can appreciate a toad,” he said.

The Western toad is a large species – females get to be about five inches wide, while males are typically a little smaller, Bowerman said. A light stripe runs down the middle of their backs. They have dry, lumpy skin and golden eyes.

Western toads can be found from the West Coast to the Rocky Mountains, and from California up to the southern tip of Alaska, according to the USGS.

The toads eat flying insects, ants, worms and spiders, among other things. As tadpoles, they feed on aquatic plants and algae.

Raccoons, ravens and snakes eat the toads.

Once a year, female toads excrete two parallel strings – one from each ovaduct – of tiny eggs. The males attach to the females, and catch the eggs in their back feet. They fertilize these eggs before releasing them into the water.

The tiny black eggs remain suspended, single-file, in jelly-like strings that can reach 30 feet in length.

Tadpoles turn into toads and leave the pond by the end of the summer, Bowerman said. Male toads reach breeding age at four years, and females at five years, he said. Nobody knows their natural lifespan, but in captivity, these toads have lived for more than 30 years.

The Western toads are distinct from other toads and frogs because they usually walk, rather than hop, Bowerman said. Toads have smaller back legs and drier, bumpier skin than frogs.

Many years ago, when Western toads were more common, Bowerman said Sunriver used to hold toad races on the Fourth of July.

”We’d draw a big circle in the baseball diamond and everyone would put their toads in the middle and step back, and the toads would all just sit there… It’d sometimes take 10 minutes before one of them would make it out of the circle,” he said with a laugh.

About 25 years ago, Bowerman founded the Sunriver Toad Patrol – an informal group of nature lovers that came together to help the indigenous amphibians cross a busy road that separates their two habitats.

In late spring, Bowerman said he usually patrols Abbot Drive between the third and fourth traffic circles in Sunriver.

”Ten years or more ago, there were three or so migration corridors. But the numbers (of toads) have dropped so much that we rarely see them anywhere other than at this one spot,” he said.

This year, droves of toads made their way to a different pond – even before the first warm rain. Bowerman said that means toads in other parts of Sunriver could still be waiting for a warm rain to blanket Abbot Drive before they migrate to other ponds.

Since its construction in 1998, Lake Penhollow has become a favorite mating spot among Western toads.

Bowerman said he is not sure how the toads found out about the pond, but theories include that the toads sniff out water sources, or that they follow the loud chirping of tree frogs that gather around ponds.

With sunny weather in the forecast all week, Bowerman estimated the eggs will hatch by the end of the week.

It could be another week or so before the tadpoles are big enough to be seen in the water, he said.

”It should be a hell of a crop, this year,” he added with a smile.

Lily Raff can be reached at 541-617-7836 or lraff@bendbulletin.com.