How to Draw a Toad

 

Is it a prince? Is it the brave steed of a small forest creature? Is it... Ah! But it's a toad! Yes, today we are going to learn how to draw this plump little amphibian. And don't confuse him with a frog! The toad has its own identity! To learn how to draw a frog, I invite you to check out the article dedicated to it! Go ahead!

 

 

 

ABOUT THE TOAD

 

 

So, in reality, the term "toad" does not specifically refer to a specific group of animals. It is used to name different species of amphibians. Please note that we will focus on the most represented genus, Bufo, which has more than 250 species around the world.

 

Note that we will not deal with the tadpole stage of the animal.

Generally, "toads" have common features:

• Short legs. They jump rather poorly, live on the ground, and prefer walking to get around.
  
  
• The muzzle is short and rounded.
  
  
• They have no teeth.
  
  
• The vast majority of toads have a horizontally-pupilled eye.
  
  
• The skin is rough and covered with irregularities and "pustules."
  
  
• The tongue is not forked, like that of snakes for example.

 

 

 

 

STUDYING THE ANIMAL'S ANATOMY FOR DRAWING

 

 

First, the classic step of observing the skeleton.

 

 

In terms of limb construction, we can see that the structure is similar to that of our limbs. Just like us, the toad is plantigrade, meaning that it walks on the soles of its feet and, in this case, on the palms of its "hands" as well.

Note that the joint of the hind legs is very far back on the spine, right at the end of the spinal column. The joint of the front legs is positioned just after the cervical vertebrae, which are very, very short.

You can see that the skull has a fairly clear triangular shape (with softened corners).

Another important element: the front legs have a small bone, which acts as an atrophied "thumb." It will not be visible on the animal.

 

A side view allows us to observe the general anatomy well.

 

 

The jaw easily covers the length of the skull (red line). Covered by tissue and skin, the muzzle stops a little before the edge of the skull, but don't forget that technically the bone goes right up to the edge.

The "head" area is shown in green. The "body/bust" area is shown in pink. Notice that the green area is just over a third of the size of the pink area. The hatched area shown in purple represents the "theoretical" neck area. I say "theoretical" because ultimately there will be no demarcation at this level, nor an actual neck.

The blue arrow points out the very low attachment of the hind leg.

 

 

 

THE ALLURE OF THE TOAD

 

 

 

 

In this example of a toad, we can revisit the proportion seen previously. The head (in green) is equivalent to a large third of the body length (in pink).

I am adding three new elements to this drawing that should capture your attention:

The "finger" is shown in black. Be careful not to finish the finger with a rounded end, which is a common mistake due to the "suction cup" aspect of frogs' fingers. At most, finish with only a slight rounding.

The blue line highlights the alignment: the nostrils align with the corners of the eyes. We will return to the head and eyes later on.

In the area highlighted in yellow, I am pointing out a typical feature of toads. Behind each eye, many toads have very prominent glands. These glands are called "parotoids," and you can find them in certain types of salamanders. They are at least twice as long as they are wide. Often, these glands accentuate the triangular shape of the head.

 

Finally, the general structure is very simple:

 

 

 

They have a triangular head (in green) and an oblong-shaped body (in pink) with a slightly "hanging" belly (hatched area in pink). The analysis of the skeleton clearly showed us that there is no bone structure to "shape" the abdomen. It is a "soft" area.

Generally, it should be kept in mind that it is an animal with a stocky body that tends to keep its legs bent, which gives it the appearance of being short-legged.

The skin on the back is uneven, covered with protrusions formed by glands and pustules. Even under the belly, the dermis retains a slightly granular effect.

Note that the skin will always be more or less "shiny," either because the animal is coming out of the water or because the skin remains moist due to the secretion of mucus.

 

 

 

 

DRAWING THE HEAD AND THE EYE

 

 

The eye is very well covered on top by an "eyelid" that perfectly envelops it. The eye is partially (halfway) nestled in the skull bone, which gives the appearance of the eye "sitting" on the head.

 

 

 

The pupil is black, horizontal, and rectangular or oblong in shape. It can also be dilated and appear round. It will be perfectly centered on the eyeball.

The light blue line follows the alignment of the nostril/eye/pupil on the head. Sometimes it seems that we can see a bit of the white of the eye in the corners. In reality, it is a slight protrusion of the inner eyelids. In the simplified diagram, these eyelids are represented in blue and indicated by an arrow.

Note the jaw that follows the length of the skull (blue arrow). The orange arrow highlights a feature that actually conceals the animal's ear. Indeed, this element will sometimes be very discreet or, on the contrary, perfectly visible, as in the following drawing.

 

 

Here is the head seen from the front:

 

 

 

The alignment of the nostril/eye/pupil is highlighted in blue. And indeed, you can see that the nostrils are really "simple." They're a small teardrop-shaped hole just above the upper jaw.

The jawline, shown in red, runs along the length of the head.

The openings of the gill slits are shown in green. It is simply a rounded entrance behind the eyes, slightly below the lower level of the eye. There is no question of making a "hole." Lightly mark the shape with a line and light shading. Here, I have deliberately emphasized them so that you can clearly place them on your drawing.

 

 

 

 

DRAWING A CROAKING TOAD

 

 

Toads, just like frogs, croak, and in popular imagination, they puff up their vocal sacs (in fact, they can sing without necessarily inflating their sac). Toads have only one vocal sac, located under the throat. When it is inflated, there is no visible demarcation of the lower jaw.

 

 

 

The bag ends right at the edge of the front foot (purple arrow/line).

Reminders of elements already seen: In green, the alignment of the nostril/eye. In red, the jaw that runs along the length of the head. In blue, a line clearly marking the boundary of the skull.

 

 

 

 

THE TOAD'S FEET

 

 

The front feet have 4 toes and the hind feet have 5.

 

 

 

The front legs are turned inward (blue arrows). The toad will often have its "elbows" turned outward and slightly forward.

The toes on the hind legs are not all the same size. The toad has a membrane between them that is especially visible between the 4th and 5th toes, and possibly between the 3rd and 4th.

 

 

 

 

DRAWING A TOAD STEP BY STEP

 

 

The common toad, the one most often encountered, is generally brown, yellowish-gray, or reddish. The skin may be solid (well, without forgetting all the "pustules" that create relief and shadows), but it may have some darker spots, especially on the animal's back. The underside is white, yellowish, solid or speckled.

Note that in the common toad, the breeding male often has smoother skin, with a hue tending more towards olive green.

Although the hues of toads are less varied and spectacular than those of frogs, you can still find some variations.

The common toad has a coppery and speckled iris with darker shades. Other toads may exhibit greener, yellow, or red hues here.

 

 

Remember the layout:

 

 

 

Align the nostril and the eye (blue), the head (green) is 1/3 of the total length of the rest of the body (pink), the jaw extends far on the head (red), and the dark green arrow marks the edge of the head.

 

 

Now that you're familiar with the animal, let's get started!

So we're going to draw our animal out of the water, trudging along, maybe he's looking to reach a new pond! I've made a quick top-down sketch of what we're going to do. This view allows us to keep the positioning of the legs in mind.

 

 

 

Leg 4 has just joined leg 2, which is about to lift. Leg 3 is about to lift to join leg 1. The animal will move towards the light, placed up high like the sun during the day. We will opt for a slightly top-down side view.

 

 

 

 

Step 1: Draw the head, which is shaped like a soft triangle.

Step 2: Draw the alignment line from the nostril/eye/pupil for structure. Since I chose a slightly overhead view, I will tilt this line a bit. → We are not in a profile view!

Step 3: Position the nostril and eye. From the tip of the snout, I will draw the center line that allows me to roughly position the spine (blue line). I will place a mark behind the eye that will serve as a reference for the parotid gland.

Stage 4: I will draw the upper limit of the parotid gland. I will close the torso with a slightly rounded belly.

Step 5: Given our desired leg position, the axes of the shoulders and hips (green lines) should be slightly inclined. I will place the shoulder blades (in red) between the head and the body. And I know that the hind legs will be at the end of the spine (blue dot on the green axis).

Step 6: I will therefore place my front leg joints (blue arrows) on the edge of my shoulder blades.

Step 7: I will stretch my limbs starting from the joints.

 

 

 

Here we go, these steps will really define the accuracy of our drawing! Let's continue!

 

 

Step 8: I will draw the legs and use the eye facing us (green lines) to place the second (orange addition).

Step 9: Check everything, including the nostril/eye alignment in light blue and the overall proportion between the head and the body.

Step 10: I will trace the finer contours over my construction lines. I will add a membrane connecting the belly and the thigh (blue arrow). Given the stretched position of the leg, this membrane is clearly visible. Shown in green, I will extend finger "4" of the right hind leg slightly. Shown in red, I will show various small lines that mark folds or joints. These types of small marks help to give structure and volume to the drawing.

 

 

Now let's move on to coloring.

 

 

Step 11: I will add a beige base for the skin and orange for the eye.

Step 12: I will add the shadows.

Step 13: I will add the basic shading to the body, making the belly and inside of the legs lighter and using a darker brown on the back.

Step 14: Since I'm not planning on doing a hyper-realistic drawing, I will sketch some irregularities (mostly pustules) on the skin here and there.

Step 15: I will overlay steps 12 (without the ground), 13, and 14.

Step 16: I will finish by adding a little light on the upper elements and in the eye and give a bit more density to the body with lighter spots and more reddish touches.

 

 

And it's done!

 

 

Normally, you should be fully equipped to draw our little amphibian from all angles! We have focused on studying and observing the common toad, but I invite you to do some research and discover other species. You'll soon see for yourself that some toads are really unique!

 

 

 

Illustrator and writer: Elo Illus