A reconstruction of the newfound Ice Age toad Spea labreae (center and right) in La Brea Tar Pits alongside the spadefoot species currently present in the area, Spea hammondii ( left) and the Mexican burrowing toad Rhinophrynidae (bottom). It’s only the second extinct ice age amphibian fossil ever found in North America. He compared the toad’s hip bone with spadefoot toad bones across the globe and discovered it belonged to an entirely new spadefoot toad species. *Editor’s Note (8/6/26): This sentence was edited after posting to specify that the toad represents the second extinct ice age amphibian fossil found in North America. Other ice age fossils have been found for amphibian species that are still around today.