cane toads in Australia

File:Young Bufo marinus.jpg

The cane toad in Australia is regarded as an exemplary case of an invasive species. Australia's relative isolation prior to European colonisation and the Industrial Revolution, both of which dramatically increased traffic and import of novel species, allowed development of a complex, interdepending system of ecology, but one which provided no natural predators for many of the species subsequently introduced. The sudden inundation of foreign species has led to severe breakdowns in Australian ecology, after overwhelming proliferation of a number of introduced species, for which the continent has no efficient natural predators or parasites, and which displace native species; in some cases, these species are physically destructive to habitat, as well. Cane toads have been very successful as an invasive species, having become established in more than 15 countries within the past 150 years.

{{cite journal |last1=G. Smith |first1=James |last2=L. Phillips |first2=Ben |title=Toxic tucker: the potential impact of Cane Toads on Australian reptiles |journal=Pacific Conservation Biology |date=2006 |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=40 |doi=10.1071/PC060040|id = {{ProQuest|862947521}}}} In the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, the Australian government listed the impacts of the cane toad as a "key threatening process".{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/ferals/cane-toads.html|title=Australian Government policy on cane toads|publisher=Department of the Environment and Energy|date=26 November 2007}}

History

=Introduction and spread=

Native to South and mainland Middle America, imported cane toads had been used in Puerto Rico to control sugar cane pests since 1920, and an influential 1932 research paper by Raquel Dexter showed that they largely ate beetle larvae that in turn ate sugar cane.{{cite journal

| last = Van Volkenberg | first = H. L.

| date = September 1935

| doi = 10.1126/science.82.2125.278

| issue = 2125

| journal = Science

| jstor = 1661212

| pages = 278–279

| title = Biological control of an insect pest by a toad

| volume = 82| pmid = 17792964

}} Based on her findings, they were introduced to Hawaii by Cyril Pemberton in the early 1930s, and then introduced to Australia from Hawaii in June 1935 by the Bureau of Sugar Experiment Stations, now Sugar Research Australia, in an attempt to control the native grey-backed cane beetle (Dermolepida albohirtum) and French's beetle (Lepidiota frenchi).Clarke, G. M., Gross, S., Matthews, M., Catling, P. C., Baker, B., Hewitt, C. L., Crowther, D., & Saddler, S. R. 2000, Environmental Pest Species in Australia, Australia: State of the Environment, Second Technical Paper Series (Biodiversity), Department of the Environment and Heritage, Canberra. Those beetles are native to Australia and they are detrimental to sugarcane crops, which are a major source of income for Australia. Adult cane beetles eat the leaves of the crop, but the main problem is the larvae, which feed on the roots. Adult cane beetles have a heavy exoskeleton and their eggs and larvae are often buried underground, making them difficult to exterminate. Furthermore, conventional methods of pest control, such as pesticide use, would have undesirable effects like eradicating harmless species of insects as well.{{cite web|url=http://australianmuseum.com/Cane-Toad|title=Cane Toad |publisher=Australian Museum}} Cane toads were to replace the use of pesticides, such as arsenic, pitch, and copper. The success of using the moth Cactoblastis cactorum in controlling prickly pears in Australia led to the hope that the cane toad would perform a similar function.{{cite web|last1=Turvey|first1=Nigel|title=Everyone agreed: cane toads would be a winner for Australia|url=https://theconversation.com/everyone-agreed-cane-toads-would-be-a-winner-for-australia-19881|website=The Conversation|date=7 November 2013 |access-date=26 October 2016}}

In June 1935, 102 cane toads (Rhinella marina, formerly ICZN Bufo marinus) were imported to Gordonvale from Hawaii, with one dying in transit due to dehydration. By March 1937, some 62,000 toadlets were bred in captivity and then released in areas around Cairns, Gordonvale, and Innisfail in northern Queensland. More toads were released around Ingham, Ayr, Mackay, and Bundaberg.{{Cite web|title=Introducing the cane toad|url=https://www.qhatlas.com.au/introducing-cane-toad|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108101216/https://www.qhatlas.com.au/introducing-cane-toad#:~:text=Mungomery%2520who%2520worked%2520for%2520the,51%2520females%2520and%252051%2520males.&text=One%2520of%2520the%2520males%2520had%2520died.|archive-date=2020-11-08|access-date=2020-12-06|website=Queensland Historical Atlas|publisher=University of Queensland|language=en-AU}} Releases were temporarily limited because of environmental concerns, but resumed in other areas after September 1936.

Since their release, toads have rapidly multiplied. By 2011 they were estimated to number over 200 million[https://www.smh.com.au/national/thousands-killed-in-toad-day-out-20110327-1cbnu.html Thousands killed in 'Toad Day Out'] The Sydney Morning Herald, 27 March 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2023. and have been known to spread diseases, thereby affecting local biodiversity.{{cite web|title=Institute for Molecular Bioscience, Killing off the cane toad |url=http://www.imb.uq.edu.au/index.html?page=48437 |access-date=2006-12-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061002024042/http://www.imb.uq.edu.au/index.html?page=48437 |archive-date=2 October 2006}} Not only has the introduction of the toads has caused significant environmental detriment, but there is no evidence that they have affected the number of cane beetles which they were introduced to prey upon.

The spread of cane toads was slow at first but, by 1959, they had colonised most of Queensland's east coast. In 1964, they appeared in the Gulf of Carpentaria. By 1978, they had reached the border of New South Wales and, by 1984, they had reached the Queensland/Northern Territory border. In March 2001, the invasion front entered the wetlands of the heritage-listed Kakadu National Park and, by 2009, the toads were close to the Northern Territory/Western Australian border, and by 2011 had become established in irrigation areas around Kununurra, in WA's north.Hitchhiker cane toad found in WA southwest/ AdelaideNow, 2 February 2011.

They have also spread south into northern New South Wales, with one isolated community in Port Macquarie. An isolated colony found in 2010 in the south of Sydney, at Taren Point, was later eradicated.[https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/media/OEHMedia14041501.htm Cane toads beware] Press release, NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, 15 April 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2023. By 2019, they had become a pest in the Torres Strait Islands, probably carried there by boat.{{cite news|last=Thompson|first=Jesse|date=31 January 2020|title=On a tiny island invaded by cane toads, this handbag has become an unlikely solution|website=ABC News|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-31/cane-toads-become-fashion-items-in-the-torres-strait/11917634|access-date=1 February 2020}} By 2022 cane toads had been sighted as far south as Bankstown, southwest of Sydney.{{cite web | url=https://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/sydney-council-hunts-for-cane-toad-on-the-loose-20220422-p5aff8.html | title=Sydney council hunts for cane toad on the loose | date=22 April 2022 }} In 2023 cane toads were found in Dural, northwest of Sydney.{{cite web | url=https://hillstohawkesbury.com.au/the-hills-police-retrieved-cane-toad/ | title=Invasive Cane Toad Sighted Near Kenthurst and Dural | date=27 May 2023 }}

The toads on the western frontier of their advance have evolved larger legs,{{cite web|title=Toxic Toads Evolve Longer Legs, Study Says. 15 February 2006. National Geographic News|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/02/0215_060215_cane_toads.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060316191230/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/02/0215_060215_cane_toads.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=16 March 2006|access-date=2006-05-19}} which is thought to be related to their ability to travel farther. As a consequence of their longer legs, larger bodies, and faster movement, about 10% of the leading-edge cane toads have also developed arthritis.{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/16/science/16obtoad.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all&adxnnlx=1193531451-eJSm5PA39SmnzeZ9ztvwsQ |title=Arthritis Fails to Slow Invading Toads in Australian Fields |author=Henry Fountain |newspaper=The New York Times |date=16 October 2007 |access-date=2007-10-27}} Cane toads are estimated to migrate around {{convert|40|km|mi|abbr=on}} per year as of 1994,{{cite book| last=Tyler| first=M. J.| year=1994| title=Australian Frogs A Natural History| publisher=Reed Books| pages=112| isbn=0-7301-0468-0}} but new research in 2014 indicated that the migration rate had increased to {{convert|60|km|mi|abbr=on}} per year on the western front.{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-09/cane-toad-evolution-advance-genetic-research-rick-shine/5799008|title=Cane toads evolving into straight, fast hoppers|date=9 October 2014|work=ABC News}}

In 2023, rangers discovered a female cane toad in Conway National Park in north Queensland which, recorded unofficially at 25 cm and 2.7 kg and dubbed 'Toadzilla', may be the largest ever seen.Knight, Mia [https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-20/giant-cane-toad-found-in-north-queensland-conway-national-park/101873072 Giant cane toad found in Conway National Park in north Queensland weighs 2.7kg] ABC News, 20 January 2023.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-64341453 |title=Australia's 'Toadzilla': Record-breaking cane toad found in Queensland |work=BBC News |date=20 January 2023}} This specimen has been preserved for display at the Queensland Museum.Knight, Mia; Naunton, Jessica, and Stephen, Adam [https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-04/giant-cane-toad-to-travel-to-brisbane-/101924404 Toadzilla to join other giant cane toads at Queensland Museum] ABC News, 4 February 2023.

Ecological effects

File:Bufoinvasion.gif

The long-term effects of toads on the Australian environment are difficult to determine, but some effects include "the depletion of native species that die eating cane toads; the poisoning of pets and humans; depletion of native fauna preyed on by cane toads; and reduced prey populations for native insectivores, such as skinks."{{cite magazine|url=http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/amphibians/cane-toad/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100201230547/http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/amphibians/cane-toad|url-status=dead|archive-date=1 February 2010|title=Cane Toad Bufo marinus|magazine=National Geographic}}

Precipitous declines in populations of the northern quoll, Mertens' water monitor, and Mitchell's water monitor have been observed after toads have invaded an area, causing them to become endangered. A number of cases of declines in goanna and snake populations have been reported after the arrival of toads.{{cite journal | last1 = Mayes | first1 = P.J. | title = Diet and foraging behaviour of the semi-aquatic Varanus mertensi (Reptilia: Varanidae) | journal = Wildlife Research | volume = 32 | pages = 67–74 | year = 2005 | last2=Thompson | first2=G. G. | last3=Withers | first3=P. C. | doi = 10.1071/WR04040}} For example, local populations of yellow-spotted monitor dropped by up to 90% when their habitat was invaded by cane toads.J. S. Doody et al (2007): A Preliminary Assessment of the Impacts of Invasive Cane Toads (Bufo marinus) on Three Species of Varanid Lizards in Australia. Mertensiella 16 (Advances in Monitor Research III), S. 218–227 The preliminary risk assessment of cane toads in Kakadu National Park stated that the predation of the cane toad by native wildlife is the greatest risk to biodiversity. Other factors, such as competition with native wildlife for resources, and the predation of the cane toad on native wildlife, were considered much lower risk factors,{{cite web|title=SSR164 – A preliminary risk assessment of cane toads in Kakadu National Park | url=http://www.deh.gov.au/ssd/publications/ssr/164.html| access-date=2006-05-22}} but requiring further study.{{cite journal|author=Boland, C. R. J.|year=2004|journal=Biological Conservation|volume=120|issue=1|pages=53–62|title=Introduced cane toads Bufo marinus are active nest predators and competitors of rainbow bee-eaters Merops ornatus: observational and experimental evidence|doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2004.01.025|bibcode=2004BCons.120...53B }} In the Northern Territory, goanna deaths resulting from poisoning after predation on cane toads has been linked to a rise in the number of undamaged saltwater crocodile eggs.{{cite web|title=Cane toad impact will boost croc hatchling numbers, researchers say |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1742950.htm |access-date=2006-10-15 |work=ABC News |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011111145/http://abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1742950.htm |archive-date=11 October 2007}}

Cane toads were present within a few days of the crocodiles hatching in April 2007.{{cite web|title=Cane Toads Present for Croc Hatching |url=http://sbs.discuvery.australia/canetoads.65145.d69f2544a66 }}{{dead link|date=March 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Numerous native species have been reported as successfully preying on toads. Some birds, such as the black kite (Milvus migrans),{{cite journal | last1 = Mitchell | first1 = D. | title = Predation on the Cane Toad (Bufo marinus) by the black kite (Milvus migrans) | journal = Memoirs of the Queensland Museum | volume = 38 | pages = 512–531 | year = 1995 | last2 = Jones | first2 = A. | last3 = Hero | first3 = J.M.}} have learned to attack the toad's belly, avoiding the poison-producing glands on the back of the head. There are numerous reports of Ibis picking up cane toads in their beaks, flicking them about, washing them and then eating them.{{Cite news |date=2022-11-22 |title=Ibis add toxic cane toads to the menu with clever technique to eliminate poison first |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-23/ibis-find-way-to-eat-toxic-cane-toads/101683596 |access-date=2024-09-28 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}{{Cite web |date=2024-03-19 |title=Iconic 'Bin Chicken' the Ibis adds poisonous cane toads to its menu |url=https://www.canberratimes.com.au/video/animal/x8uv4jw/iconic-bin-chicken-the-ibis-adds-poisonous-cane-toads-to-its-menu/ |access-date=2024-09-28 |website=The Canberra Times |language=en-AU}} Anecdotal reports in the Northern Territory suggest that a native frog, Dahl's aquatic frog (Litoria dahlii), is able to eat the tadpoles and live young of the toad without being affected by the poison that often kills other predators.{{cite web|title=NT frog 'eats' Cane Toad |date=15 December 2004|work=ABC News| url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200412/s1265310.htm|access-date=9 May 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041216021700/http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200412/s1265310.htm|archive-date=16 December 2004 }} This may account for slower than expected infestations of toads in certain areas of the Northern Territory, although later research carried out jointly by several Australian Universities casts doubt on these reports..{{cite web|title=Team Bufo: About Us|url=http://www.canetoadsinoz.com/aboutus.html}} Some snake species have been reported to have adapted smaller jaws so that they are unable to swallow large cane toads, which have large quantities of poison.{{cite journal | last = Phillips | first = Ben L. | title = Adapting to an invasive species: Toxic cane toads induce morphological change in Australian snakes | doi = 10.1073/pnas.0406440101 | journal = PNAS | volume = 101 | pages = 17150–17155 |date=December 2004|author2=Shine, Richard | pmid = 15569943 | issue = 49 | pmc = 535375|bibcode = 2004PNAS..10117150P | doi-access = free }}

Another study, however, notes that the cane toad is adapting to a wider environmental range and may in the future be spreading into habitats currently not available.{{cite journal | last = Urban| first = Mark C. | title = The cane toad's (Chaunus Bufo marinus) increasing ability to invade Australia is revealed by a dynamically updated range model | doi = 10.1098/rspb.2007.0114 | journal = Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences | year = 2007 |author2=Ben L. Phillips |author3=David K. Skelly |author4=Richard Shine | pmid = 17389221 | volume = 274 | issue = 1616 | pages = 1413–9 | pmc = 2176198}}

In 2009, the native meat ant was found to be immune to the toad's poison and can successfully prey upon young cane toads. Whereas native frogs and toads have natural reflexes to avoid the meat ants, the cane toads do not tend to try to escape the ants, rather standing still when attacked waiting for the toxin to kill the attacker.{{cite news|url = http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article6007268.ece| title = Killer ants are weapons of mass toad destruction|access-date = 2009-03-31 | location=London | work=The Times | first=Claire | last=Sweeney | date=31 March 2009}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

New research has indicated that cane toads prey on dung beetles by nestling in cow pats and waiting for the beetles, eating up to 150 in one meal. In areas where cane toads have free access to water in dams, the dung beetles have been decimated. This indicates that the cane toad has the potential to economically affect the cattle industry through increased disease in cattle.{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-04-14/cane-toad-threatens-valuable-dung-beetle-scientists-say/6392598|title=Cane toad threatens valuable dung beetle, scientists say|date=14 April 2015|work=ABC News}}

=Predator effects=

File:Kookaburra with Cane Toad - AndrewMercer - DSC00046.jpg with a juvenile cane toad.]]

Predators in Australia are not adapted to the cane toad's toxin, which is its main defense mechanism. Because of this, toads do not tend to hide and are usually targeted by predators, which then expose themselves to the toxic effects. One study suggests Australian reptiles are greatly threatened by invasion of the cane toad, more so than any other group. Two species of crocodiles and around 70 species of freshwater turtles were found to be at risk of invasion, and all species studied were found capable of eating a toad large enough to kill them. All freshwater turtles and crocodiles are predicted to share part of their future distribution with the invasive species by 2030. Australia's varanids and agamids are also at a great risk.

One native freshwater turtle species, Myuchelys latisternum (saw-shelled turtle), which ranges along rivers and streams from Cape York Peninsula to northern New South Wales, is reported to be one of the few native animals that is a successful predator of cane toads.Ryan, Michelle, General Editor. (2000). Wildlife of Tropical North Queensland: Cooktown to Mackay. Queensland Museum. {{ISBN|0-7242-9349-3}}. p. 198. The larger the animal, or predator, is the better chance it has of survival, as its body weight effectively dilutes the concentration of the toxin in its body. There are reports of one native species, the Torresian crow, eating cane toads without ingesting the poison by flipping it onto its back and eating its non-toxic innards via its underside.{{cite web|author=Katrina Bolton |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/15/2033759.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071209125627/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/15/2033759.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=9 December 2007 |title=Toads fall victim to crows in NT – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) |work=ABC News|date=2007-09-15 |access-date=2011-11-12}} In 2014, researchers found evidence that the Australian freshwater crocodile (Crocodylus johnstoni) had learned to eat just the hind legs of cane toads.{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-11-17/dwarf-crocodiles-learning-to-fight-back-to-cane-toad/5896738|title=Miniature crocodiles fighting back against cane toad menace|date=17 November 2014|work=ABC News}} One research study concluded that in less than 75 years, the red-bellied black snake had evolved in toad-inhabited regions of Australia to have increased resistance to toad toxin and decreased preference for toads as prey.{{cite journal |vauthors=Phillips BL, Shine R |title=An invasive species induces rapid adaptive change in a native predator: cane toads and black snakes in Australia |journal=Proc. Biol. Sci. |volume=273 |issue=1593 |pages=1545–50 |year=2006 |pmid=16777750 |pmc=1560325 |doi=10.1098/rspb.2006.3479 }}

Evidence exists for native predator species adapting to the presence of the cane toad, through learning or evolutionary selection, but the initial drop in population is often steep and can reduce biodiversity on a population level. One proposed solution is to use "teacher toads", or smaller toads that are less likely to kill predators. These toads would allow predators to learn not to eat the toads while mitigating mortality. Some have even proposed adding some chemical to make the toads distasteful to further discourage predation. These efforts have shown some promising results so far.

A study to be published in the Ecology journal states that the invasion of cane toads in a case study area caused a trophic cascade over a period of five years. The resident predators, the monitor lizards, ate the cane toads and died, which resulted in a boom in the population of the lizards' typical prey, crimson finches.{{cite journal|title=Invasive toads shift predator–prey densities in animal communities by removing top predators|first1=J. Sean|last1=Doody|first2=Rebekah|last2=Soanes|first3=Christina M.|last3=Castellano|first4=David|last4=Rhind|first5=Brian|last5=Green|first6=Colin R.|last6=McHenry|first7=Simon|last7=Clulow|journal= Ecology|volume=96|issue=9|pages=2544–2554|doi=10.1890/14-1332.1|pmid = 26594710|year = 2015|doi-access=free|bibcode=2015Ecol...96.2544D }}

Richard Shine is using behavioural conditioning techniques to teach the northern quoll to avoid cane toads.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/science/fundamentals/article/2016/10/19/meet-richard-shine-who-saving-our-native-animals-cane-toads|title=Meet Richard Shine, who is saving our native animals from cane toads|website=www.sbs.com.au|accessdate=19 May 2023}}

In 2019, the native rakali or Australian water rats (Hydromys chrysogaster) were found to have learned to make an incision to eat the cane toads' hearts and livers, while avoiding their lethal skin and glands. The water rats were able to adapt the hunting strategies within two years of the cane toads' introduction into their territory.{{cite journal|url=https://www.publish.csiro.au/AM/AM19016|title=Eat your heart out: choice and handling of novel toxic prey by predatory water rats|journal=Australian Mammalogy |year=2019 |doi=10.1071/AM19016 |last1=Parrott |first1=Marissa L. |last2=Doody |first2=J. Sean |last3=McHenry |first3=Colin |last4=Clulow |first4=Simon |volume=42 |issue=2 |page=235 |s2cid=203879527 }}

It has been found that in Australia, cane toad tadpoles eat cane toad eggs.{{cite news |last1=Hinchliffe |first1=Joe |title=Scientists have birthed a ‘super cannibal’ that never grows up. Could it be key to combating Australia’s cane toad menace? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/apr/26/scientists-have-birthed-a-super-cannibal-that-never-grows-up-could-it-be-key-to-combating-australias-cane-toad-menace |access-date=27 April 2025 |work=The Guardian |date=26 April 2025}}

=Methods to control spread of cane toads in Australia=

Currently, most attempts to decrease the invasion of cane toads have been unsuccessful. Many of these strategies involve the physical trapping of toads, but these methods also capture unintended native species.{{cite web|url=http://www.canetoadsinoz.com|title=Cane Toads in Oz|work=canetoadsinoz.com}} Since the largest selective pressure on cane toads currently is intraspecies competition, these physical removals often only improve the conditions for untrapped toads. Also, since migration is high, any area purged of toads would most likely be reinvaded quickly.

Many new ideas have been proposed to control the cane toad population. Some have suggested introducing a native viral or bacterial pest of the toads, but this has potential to once again invade native species. Two similar strategies have been proposed, both of which focus on fecundity. One involves the release of sterile males into the population. These males would compete for resources with other males, while themselves not being able to reproduce. A second strategy would be to insert a gene in female toads, which would allow them to only create male offspring. In theory, this would limit the reproductive rates and control the population. Determining the efficacy and dangers of these approaches is difficult, as these methods have never been attempted, especially on a large scale.

On 13 June 2012, news reports cited a new research breakthrough regarding cane toad control. Cane toad tadpoles are attracted to the toxin produced by adults and spawn as they are believed to cannibalize toad spawn as a food source. Researchers used cane toad toxin to successfully lure cane toad tadpoles, implying that in controlled areas, tadpoles could be captured and eradicated.{{Cite journal |last1=Shine |first1=Richard |last2=Baeckens |first2=Simon |date=2023-07-27 |editor-last=Tinghitella |editor-first=Robin |editor2-last=Chapman |editor2-first=Tracey |title=Rapidly evolved traits enable new conservation tools: perspectives from the cane toad invasion of Australia |url=https://academic.oup.com/evolut/article/77/8/1744/7190198 |journal=Evolution |language=en |volume=77 |issue=8 |pages=1744–1755 |doi=10.1093/evolut/qpad102 |pmid=37279524 |issn=0014-3820|hdl=10067/1971290151162165141 |hdl-access=free }}{{cite journal|author= Sarah Zielinski |title= The Reluctant Toad Killer |journal=Science|pages= 1375–7 |volume= 336 |date= 15 June 2012|bibcode= 2012Sci...336.1375Z|doi= 10.1126/science.336.6087.1375|pmid= 22700900|issue= 6087}}

As of 2024, commercially available cane toad tadpole traps are being produced, with a bait using a lure consisting of a small airstone coated with pheromone extracted from the parotoid gland of the toads, which attracts cane toad tadpoles but not other tadpole species. The traps are placed in the shallow edges of bodies of water, and are able to catch thousands of cane toad tadpoles within hours.{{cite web |title=Cane Toad Tadpole Traps Have Arrived |url=https://www.fame.org.au/news/cane-toad-tadpole-traps-have-arrived |website=FAME |publisher=Foundation for Australia's Most Endagered Species |access-date=1 November 2024 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241101145829/https://www.fame.org.au/news/cane-toad-tadpole-traps-have-arrived |archive-date=2024-11-01 |url-status=live}} Some local and state government bodies have been promoting the usage of such traps by residents to curtail spread of toads without impacting on the tadpoles of other frogs.{{cite web |title=Cane Toad Management Resources |url=https://www.dbca.wa.gov.au/management/threat-management/invasive-animals/cane-toad-management/cane-toad-management-resources |website=Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions |publisher=Government of Western Australia |access-date=1 November 2024 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241101144328/https://www.dbca.wa.gov.au/management/threat-management/invasive-animals/cane-toad-management/cane-toad-management-resources |archive-date=2024-11-01 |url-status=live}}{{cite web |title=Trapping cane toad tadpoles |url=https://www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/environment/education-resources-and-events/environment-resources-and-publications/pest-management-plant-and-animal/cane-toad-tadpole-trapping |website=Sunshine Coast Council |publisher=Sunshine Coast Regional Council |access-date=1 November 2024 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241101144611/https://www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/environment/education-resources-and-events/environment-resources-and-publications/pest-management-plant-and-animal/cane-toad-tadpole-trapping |archive-date=2024-11-01 |url-status=live}}

In semiarid areas where water is scarce, the construction of toad-proof fences around dams can severely affect toad survival rates by denying them access to water.{{cite web|url=http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/fences-could-halt-cane-toad-invasion-of-arid-australia-study-20150203-134y41.html|title=Fences could halt cane toad invasion of arid Australia, study|first=Nicky|last=Phillips|date=4 February 2015|work=The Sydney Morning Herald}}

The RSPCA has guidelines{{cite web|url=http://kb.rspca.org.au/What-is-the-most-humane-way-to-kill-a-cane-toad_299.html|title=What is the most humane way to kill a cane toad? |publisher=RSPCA Australia }} for the humane culling of cane toads. Inhumane ways are illegal in most states and territories.{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive-species/publications/can001-methods-field-euthanasia-cane-toads|title=Methods for the field euthanasia of cane toads|publisher=Australian Government, Department of the Environment and Energy|date=2011}} Due to concerns over potential harm to other Australian wildlife species, the use of Dettol as pest control was banned in Western Australia by the Department of Environment and Conservation in 2011.{{cite news |url=http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/cane-toad-poison-banned/story-e6frg12c-1225715177178 |title=Cane toad poison banned |date=23 May 2009 |author=Narelle Towie |newspaper=Perth Now |access-date=2 February 2013 }}

Large predators, such as the yellow-spotted monitors and sand goannas, are being fed young, small, cane toads by researchers to create a "food poisoning"-like experience for the predators, in the hope that they will avoid eating adult toads, which might kill them.{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2015/s4383945.htm|title='Food poisoning' helps goannas survive invading cane-toad|date=6 January 2016|work=ABC News}}

Poisonous sausages containing toad meat are being trialed in the Kimberley (Western Australia) to try to protect native animals from cane toads' deadly impact. The Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation has been working with the University of Sydney to develop baits to train native animals not to eat the toads. By blending bits of toad with a nausea-inducing chemical, the baits train the animals to stay away from the amphibians. Researcher David Pearson says trials run in laboratories and in remote parts of the Kimberley region of WA are looking promising, although the baits will not solve the cane-toad problem altogether.{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-11-14/cane-toad-sausages-to-help-protect-native-species-in-wa-north/8024904|title=Cane toad sausages on the menu for Kimberley wildlife in taste aversion project|date=14 November 2016|work=ABC News|first=Erin |last=Parke}} By 2023, field research indicated that the taste aversion project had not been effective in reducing toad-induced northern quoll decline in the Kimberley.{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2023-10-31/doubts-raised-over-effectiveness-of-cane-toad-sausages/103003684|title=Doubts cane toad sausages can protect Kimberley quolls as pest pushes into WA|date=31 October 2023|work=ABC News|first= Peter|last=de Kruijff}}

Novel uses

File:Aga-Kröte (Geldbörse).jpg made from a cane toad]]

Attempts have been made to make use of dead cane toads, which can number in the thousands and cause hygiene problems. This includes processing the carcasses into liquid fertilisers.{{cite web|title=Toads as Fertilizer – DirtDoctor.com – Howard Garrett |url=http://www.dirtdoctor.com/view_question.php?id=1470 |access-date=2006-06-07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060619210310/http://www.dirtdoctor.com/view_question.php?id=1470 |archive-date=19 June 2006}}

Their skin can be made into leather, and novelty cane-toad purses made of the fore body and abdomen have been made. In the Torres Strait Islands, where the toads arrived around 2014, one entrepreneur is tanning the hides to create a durable leather, and creating luxury fashion handbags from the skins.

In popular culture

The cane toad has been listed by the National Trust of Queensland as a state icon of Queensland, alongside the Great Barrier Reef, and past icons, the Royal Flying Doctor Service and the backyard mango tree (also an introduced species).{{cite web|title=National Trust Queensland National Icons |url=http://www.nationaltrustqld.org/qldicons.htm |access-date=2006-10-17 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060919020549/http://www.nationaltrustqld.org/qldicons.htm |archive-date=19 September 2006}}

"Cane toad" is also a colloquial term for an inhabitant of Queensland, particularly the state's State of Origin rugby league team members and supporters.{{cite web| title=Australian slang terms – Koalanet.com.au| url=http://www.koalanet.com.au/australian-slang.html| access-date=2010-04-02}}

In Australian states where the cane toad is common, some "sports" have developed, such as cane-toad golf and cane-toad cricket, where cane toads are used as balls. In April 2005, Dave Tollner, a Northern Territory Member of Parliament, called for legalisation of attacks on cane toads. This was criticised by many animal and conservation groups, who claim freezing is a more humane way to kill cane toads than hitting them with cricket bats.{{cite web| title=Cane toad clubbing sparks controversy| url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200504/s1342444.htm| access-date=2006-06-20| work=ABC News| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060301095054/http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200504/s1342444.htm| archive-date=1 March 2006| url-status=dead}} Townsville holds an annual "Toad Day Out", where the community learn about and catch cane toads, with prizes for the largest toad caught, and the heaviest weight of toads caught. In 2015, {{convert|143.6|kg|abbr=on}} of toads were caught.{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/local/photos/2015/03/30/4207549.htm|title=Townsville kids kick cane toads out of town|date=30 March 2015|work=ABC News}} In 2016, a drier year, {{convert|92|kg|abbr=on}} of toads were caught.{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-22/toad-day-out/7266622|title=Townsville's annual cane toad hunt sees lowest yield ever|date=22 March 2016|work=ABC News}} Cane toad races are popular in some towns and pubs. Toads are given humorous names and punters can bid or buy a toad or bet on them as in horse racing. Entrants or the winners commonly have to kiss their toads.{{cite web|url=http://www.amazingaustralia.com.au/cane_toad_races.htm|title=Cane toad races in Australia – cane toad racing in Queensland Australia|work=amazingaustralia.com.au}}{{cite web|url=http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowUserReviews-g255070-d544848-r3811447-Iron_Bar-Port_Douglas_Queensland.html|title=Cane toad racing – Iron Bar, Port Douglas Traveller Reviews – TripAdvisor|work=tripadvisor.com.au}}

The introduction and subsequent migration of the cane toad in Australia was popularised by the film Cane Toads: An Unnatural History (1988), which tells the tale with a humorous edge and is often shown in environmental science courses. Don Spencer, a popular children's entertainer, sang the song "Warts 'n' All", which was used in the documentary. A longer sequel, Cane Toads: The Conquest, by the same filmmaker, was made in 2010.

The short film Cane Toad – What happened to Baz? displays an Australian attitude towards the cane toad. This film won the "Best Comedy" award at the 2003 St Kilda Film Festival.{{citation needed|date=January 2020}}

A controversial commercial for Tooheys beer company showed people from New South Wales standing at the New South Wales-Queensland border with golf clubs and lights, attracting cane toads just so they could hit them back across the border with the golf clubs.{{cite web| title=Vulgar, Violent Ads| url=http://www.walk.com.au/pedestriancouncil/Page.asp?PageID=866| access-date=2009-07-20}}{{cite news| title=Cane Toad Golf Out of Bounds| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1553992/Cane-toad-golf-out-of-bounds-says-RSPCA.html| access-date=2009-07-20 | work=The Daily Telegraph | location=London | first=Nick | last=Squires | date=8 June 2007}}

The Cane Toad Times was a satirical humour magazine based in Brisbane, Queensland.

The invasive nature of cane toads was referenced in The Simpsons episode "Bart vs. Australia".{{cite video | people=Mirkin, David|date=2005|title=The Simpsons season 6 DVD commentary for the episode "Bart vs. Australia"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}} It was also parodied in the episode "Bart the Mother"{{cite video | people=Cohen, David S. |date=2007|title=The Simpsons The Complete Tenth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Bart the Mother"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}} in which an invasive lizard is dealt with by introducing other species.

References

External links

{{IMDb title|qid=Q5032217|title=Cane Toads: An Unnatural History}}
{{IMDb title|qid=Q18703093|title=Cane Toads: The Conquest}}
[http://www.canetoadsinoz.com/ Summary of cane toad research in Australia]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20090508161756/http://www.amonline.net.au/factsheets/canetoad.htm Cane toad factsheet] —Australian Museum (2003)
[https://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A12945017 The Cane Toad – Australia's Amphibian Plague at h2g2]
"[http://www.bitte-downloaden.de/animationen/cane_toad.htm Cane Toad – What Happened To Baz?]" —the prize-winning Australian animated short, hosted on a German site
[http://www.canetoads.com.au Kimberley Toad Busters]
[https://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/resources/3f534390-51d6-45b5-8411-9a3913814027/files/cane-toad-fs.pdf The Cane Toad (Bufo Marinus)] —Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (2010)

Category:Fauna naturalised in Australia

Category:Invasive animal species in Australia

Category:Q150 Icons