SUNDAY SUN (Newcastle, UK) 29 April 07 Horny toads' orgy hits fishing firm (Coreena Ford)

A North man's business could "croak" because of the horny antics of thousands of mating toads.

As many as 600 carp and other fish - worth up to £15,000 - have been killed by amorous amphibians in a lake used by anglers at the Wykeham Estate, North Yorkshire.

Recent warm weather led the confused toads to believe it was mating season, prompting them to move into the shallow, warmer waters of the lake, where they latched onto the carp.

In their mating frenzy, the toads clamp themselves on to the carp's face and push its eyes into the sockets and, if dozens of the creatures are stuck tightly to the fish, the carp drowns because its gills are covered.

The toads have now left the lake - one of five on the picturesque estate near Pickering - but the full financial and environmental repercussions of their breeding orgy are only just beginning to surface.

Wykeham Lakes manager Mike Heelis said the lake could be closed permanently . . . and the future of the business may not be safe either.

He said: "I don't know, ask me again in six months . . . it's an unknown at the moment.

"Half the stock of the lake have been killed - that's roach, bream, chub, tench and perch, as well as the carp - and the decomposing fish on the lake bottom are causing oxygen levels to go down and ammonia levels to go up.

"That means the whole ecosystem is being harmed.

"All other insects, fish and flies living in the lake could have been affected, but we'll only discover how badly over the next few months.

"Potentially, it could take years for the lake and fish to recover.

"We can't contemplate restocking the lake until December, and it may not be worth it.

"Toads tend to return to the same lake to breed each year, which means we'll be dealing with the same problem again next year . . . it'll be like throwing money away."

Mike says that the other lakes are open but many club competitions have had to be cancelled.

He said: "The others are fine for fishing but if the punters can't use that one large lake that's 20 per cent of our business gone."

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