Green cross toad (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Green cross toad

THE famous tongue twister talks of two toads totally tired of trying to trot to Tetbury but now the Tetbury toads have a new problem - trying to traverse the Tesco tarmac.

When the supermarket was built locals fought a long campaign to keep the small pond which had been in the centre of the site for many years.

The pond was saved and with it all the wildlife and creatures which lived in and around it including hundreds of frogs and toads.

This had led to a major problem in recent years and the amphibian residents' fatal attempts to cross the car park were often a grisly sight for shoppers.

But now new store manager Pete Drover at Tesco in Tetbury kick-started the campaign to bring warning signs to the area and raise local awareness to tackle the issue.

Mark Wallington, who lives and works in Tetbury, said the problem with frogs and toads crossing the car park came up every year.

"Tesco have now put signs up now but there will still be problems," he said. "It has just started this year, last year there were thousands of bodies in the car park.

It has been well worth preserving the pond because it is being used and it is very much in Tesco's favour that they have done this and are now putting up signs."

Pete Drover said: "We have a pond on our site and during the toad-breeding season customers driving to the store are often completely unaware that there are toads hopping around. In previous years, the toads have had a rough time of it in."

As soon as Pete became aware of the issue, he put in a request for warning signs for motorists around the pond area and the Tesco property team in head office rushed them over to the store.

Pete said: "We've put up signs to alert people to their presence and we're doing what we can in store to let customers know and ask them to mind our toads.

"It might seem a small gesture to some, but some staff members and customers had expressed their concerns for the welfare of the toads, so it just seemed like the right thing to do."

Rosie Kliffe, head of habitat and species at the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, said the signs were a good idea but Tesco could do more to protect the wildlife near the Tetbury store.

She said: "Toads in particular are very loyal to their spawning ponds, the one they were spawned in is the one they will go back to. That is why it is important to protect ponds in both rural and urban areas."

But she said a tunnel or path underneath the car park for the frogs and toads to hop through away from the dangers of cars could help save more of them.