Frogs and toads are different animals, but distinguishable from each other. Frogs and toads are of the same order, either Anura or Salientia (depending on the classification system). They breed and have their young in similar ways, and they both hunt for food at twilight or at night (although some toads are active during the day).

If you can get close enough before either creature dives into the pond as you approach, though, you can see the differences: Frogs have much smoother skin than toads; toads almost always have warts; frogs live near moist areas, but toads can live in drier places; frogs lay their eggs in clumps, whereas toads tend to lay them in long strands in a pond; toads are more fat-bodied, while frogs tend to be slimmer; toads have an oval, raised glandular area behind the eye, but frogs do not; and toads have an L-shaped ridge between and in back of their eyes, while frogs do not.