Why do many toads move with short hops or walking rather than long leaps?

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natterjack toad (Bufo calamita) — frog and toad The natterjack toad (*Bufo calamita*) lives in northern Europe.

Many toads move with short hops or by walking rather than long leaps primarily due to their physical structure. Unlike many frogs, which possess long, powerful hind limbs adapted for leaping, members of families such as Bufonidae, Rhinophrynidae, and Microhylidae have relatively short hind limbs.1

Because their legs are shorter in proportion to their head and body, these animals appear squat and rotund, making a series of short hops or a walking gait more efficient for their body type than the explosive leaping seen in other anurans. While "frog" and "toad" are often used as common labels, these differences in locomotion are simply variations in the physical adaptations of species within the order Anura.12