Read the following text to answer the question! Kids getting under your skin? It's no joke for a female Surinam toad. The common Suriname toad or star-fingered toad (Pipa pipa) is a species of frog in the family Pipidae and they are best known for their reproductive habits. Any idea, why? It is because rather than laying eggs somewhere in the water like many toads,female Surinam toadkeeps her eggs close to her, under her skin until they are ready to hatch. The road towards this interesting reproductive process begins as soon as the rainy season sets in when the toads start looking for love. Instead of attracting a mate using croaks, the male toad makes a clicking sound with his hyoid bone. He then mounts the larger female by crawling onto her back. If the female is receptive, she quivers in response to his grasp. Then, it’s game on for coitus that can last more than 12 hours. With the male holding on tight, the pair begin to do somersaults in the water. During this display while the pair are upside down, the female will express a few eggs at a time. The male then catches the eggs with his body, fertilizes them, and rolls them into the holes in her back. Females can average about 60-100 eggs per breeding, and the skin begins to resemble a pus-filled irregular honeycomb. Soon after the female’s back is fully loaded with eggs, skin grows over the holes, protecting the developing offspring for the four months of pregnancy. During this time, the mother takes special care to protect herself and her young from predators and is rarely seen. When the eggs are ready to hatch, the babies begin to punch their hands through the holes, until they are able to make their way through. In a short amount of time, up to 100 fully formed toads will come out of their mother's skin. The emerging offspring aren’t the tadpoles that might be expected; they actually come out as toadlets. The larval tadpole stage occurred in the mother’s back prior to hatching. This method allows the offspring to head out and find their own food immediately after birth, and they will not require any further care from their mother. After giving birth to the new toads, the mother slowly sheds the thin layer of skin that was used to birth them, and can begin the cycle again. ____ they are out from their mother's back, the toads begin a largely solitary life. Based on the passage, what is the most suitable word to complete the sentence?

Question

Read the following text to answer the question!

Kids getting under your skin? It's no joke for a female Surinam toad. The common Suriname toad or star-fingered toad (Pipa pipa) is a species of frog in the family Pipidae and they are best known for their reproductive habits. Any idea, why? It is because rather than laying eggs somewhere in the water like many toads, female Surinam toad keeps her eggs close to her, under her skin until they are ready to hatch.

The road towards this interesting reproductive process begins as soon as the rainy season sets in when the toads start looking for love. Instead of attracting a mate using croaks, the male toad makes a clicking sound with his hyoid bone. He then mounts the larger female by crawling onto her back. If the female is receptive, she quivers in response to his grasp. Then, it’s game on for coitus that can last more than 12 hours.

With the male holding on tight, the pair begin to do somersaults in the water. During this display while the pair are upside down, the female will express a few eggs at a time. The male then catches the eggs with his body, fertilizes them, and rolls them into the holes in her back. Females can average about 60-100 eggs per breeding, and the skin begins to resemble a pus-filled irregular honeycomb.

Soon after the female’s back is fully loaded with eggs, skin grows over the holes, protecting the developing offspring for the four months of pregnancy. During this time, the mother takes special care to protect herself and her young from predators and is rarely seen.

When the eggs are ready to hatch, the babies begin to punch their hands through the holes, until they are able to make their way through. In a short amount of time, up to 100 fully formed toads will come out of their mother's skin. The emerging offspring aren’t the tadpoles that might be expected; they actually come out as toadlets. The larval tadpole stage occurred in the mother’s back prior to hatching. This method allows the offspring to head out and find their own food immediately after birth, and they will not require any further care from their mother.

After giving birth to the new toads, the mother slowly sheds the thin layer of skin that was used to birth them, and can begin the cycle again.

____ they are out from their mother's back, the toads begin a largely solitary life.

Based on the passage, what is the most suitable word to complete the sentence?