A short and scenic, tree-lined stretch of road on the perimeter of Richmond Park has closed for three weeks to allow breeding toads to begin their annual 'pilgrimage' to the opposite side of the road.

More than ten bright red ROAD CLOSED signs, barriers and bright yellow warning signs blocked off the road this morning, bamboozling motorists who were caught by surprise at the closure and unaware of the unusual reason.

The section of Church Road, between Ham Gate and Latchmere Lane - a popular cut-through from Ham to the park entrance - has closed from today until Friday, April 1 2022.

The migrating toads, which live on Ham Common, are currently breeding and will make the short 100 metre 'hop' from their usual habitat to pools and ponds on the other side of the road where they will spawn for about three weeks.

Local residents in the area have been informed by post of the migration and the road closure. According to the extensive signage, there are 'toad patrol volunteers on the road' although when Nub News paid a visit there today was no sign of any volunteers or any toads! Over 100,000 toads annually are helped across roads by volunteers throughout the UK and the number of toad patrols has doubled since 2009. To aid the toads on their journey, small fencing has been installed along the edge of the common to enable the toad patrol patrollers to pick them up and help them over the highway to complete their onward journey. In a statement Richmond Council said: "Temporary signage has been erected by the Council to warn drivers about the toad migration. There will be a diversion in place to avoid the closed road, which is via Ham Gate Avenue, Upper Ham Road and Church Road and vice versa." As temperatures are rising, toads start to wander the streets in search of their spawning grounds. With temperatures now rarely dropping below 6 degrees Celsius (43 degrees Fahrenheit) at night, it is the ideal weather for amphibians to migrate. Every year in spring, adult toads migrate en masse from their hibernation site, often in woodland, to their breeding pond (which can be more than 1km away). After breeding, toads gradually return to their previous summer habitats to forage, and will migrate to their hibernation site again in late autumn. If you manage to get a photo of the roads on the move please share with [email protected]