- Lifespan
- 10–12 years in the wild; up to 40 years in captivity
- Size & Weight
- 8–15 cm body length; 0.5–2.5 kg (females larger than males)
- Habitat
- Grasslands, woodlands, hedgerows, and gardens with access to ponds or ditches for breeding; tolerates dry conditions and can be found far from water outside breeding season.
- UK Distribution
- Found throughout mainland Britain and Wales, absent from Ireland and most Scottish islands. Resident year-round; returns to breeding ponds in late winter and early spring.
- Diet
- Carnivorous; feeds on invertebrates including insects, slugs, snails, spiders, earthworms, and small vertebrates such as newts and slow worms.
- Prey
- Beetles, ants, flies, earthworms, slugs, snails, small lizards, and juvenile newts
- Predators
- Grass snakes, hedgehogs, badgers, foxes, herons, and crows; tadpoles eaten by dragonfly nymphs and aquatic insects
- Mating Season
- February to April
- Breeding
- Females lay long strings of spawn containing 5,000–12,000 eggs in ponds; eggs hatch within 3–12 days depending on temperature; tadpoles metamorphose within 2–3 months.
- Behaviour
- Mainly nocturnal and solitary; hunts by walking and waiting, using a sticky tongue to capture prey. Produces toxic secretions from skin glands as defence against predators; may inflate body to appear larger when threatened.