It is common in China (specifically Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guizhou, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Inner Mongolia, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, and Zhejiang) and portions of the Russian Far East (up north to the Amur River valley and on Sakhalin Island, and east to Transbaikalia in Siberia),[2] but relatively rare on the Korean Peninsula.

It prefers humid areas, and is seldom found at altitudes of more than 800 meters.

[1] The Asiatic toad plays an important role in traditional Chinese medicine.

[citation needed] In addition, dried toad skins have been prescribed as remedies for dropsy and other ailments.

[citation needed] More recently, Western medical science has also taken an interest in the toad.