Found a spadefoot with my spade

Whilst digging through some dirt to the side of the porch over Spring Break, I scooped up a small toad with my shovel. I was surprised to see a little amphibian as I shoveled dirt into a pot. I picked the frog up and held it. Funnily, he was still asleep even after tumbling around- I wonder how long the toad had been in the dirt pile? Slowly, it shook off its slumber to give me the wide eyed 'hypno-toad!' stare. They have such beautiful golden irises when spread out and pupils more vertical slits in shape made even more striking by their round, bulging out morphology. I saw the yellow lines running down the back, the general brown color, and to get a final identification I checked the hind limbs for the single tubercle. Yes, it was singly spade-footed, thus I was holding a Scaphiopus holbrooki- Eastern Spadefoot Toad. These Anurans are of the Family Scaphiopodidae, a North American frog family whose range extends from southern Canada to southern Mexico, and are the only member naturally occurring east of the Mississippi River. Scaphiopodidae differs from Bufonidae (the "true toads") in possessing vertical pupils, smooth skin, and the absence of parotid glands. These medium sized frogs are primarily nocturnal and spend most of their time in aestivation. S. holbrookii has evolved to be an explosive breeding species to contend with ephemeral spawning pools. They aestivate most of the year (up to about 8 months) and throughout the spring and summer they breed as much as possible an emerge every so often on wet nights to feed. Aestivation is a way to conserve energy and survive throughout the year for the brief, explosive mating opportunities in the warmer months. I had not seen the Wikipedia entry for these guys, but today looking at one page referenced by the wiki page (http://www.enature.com/fieldguides/detail.asp?recnum=AR0003) I noticed it said that these creatures have been seen unscathed in the smoldering ashes of a brushfire- intriguing. Given their southeastern range over longleaf pine forest this makes sense. For a while this toad (approximately 6.5 cm SVL) resided on the porch in a flower pot. Now he chills in a bin with dirt and he makes his residence under a seashell. The toad does nothing but sleep all the time, every so often I have heard him digging (spade hitting the plastic, usually at night or early morning) and when disturbed he huffs and puffs up in the utmost irritation and shoots an icy glare. Also, this toad has a broken hip that I am curious to see if it improves- it can walk and hop but awkwardly.I wonder, what is the deepest underground these frogs burrow?

Found by TJ Mistler in a backyard in downtown Charleston

-sleep disturbed!-