[1] The specific name nelsoni honors Edward William Nelson, an American naturalist and ethnologist.

The riverside growth consists of cottonwoods, sedges and cattails and breeding takes place in the springs where there is often little aquatic vegetation.

[1] The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed the status of the Amargosa toad as being critically endangered.

Factors that adversely affect it include variable amounts of rainfall, the increased use of off-road vehicles, the trampling of grazing animals, dredging operations for flood control and commercial development.

[1] Effective steps are being taken by local citizens, ranchers, and farmers to preserve and restore the Amargosa toad's population in the area, in part to avoid federal intervention through the Endangered Species Act.