Monster Toads In Australia

Cane Toad

Now playing in Australia: Invasion of the Monster Toads!

Today's story began back in the nineteen thirties when Australia's sugar-cane farmers had a problem. Beetles were chewing up the fields. So they imported the South American Cane Toad, a creature that devoured beetles like a movie monster.

But things didn't work out quite as they planned. Instead of playing a helpful role, the poisonous toads acted like space aliens in a fifties thriller. They overwhelmed Australia's ecosystem, killing millions of native animals, even small crocs.

It seemed that resistance was futile. Then, a group of environmental heroes leapt onto the scene. The folks at FrogWatch hunted the toads, blinding them with bright lights and capturing them where they sat.

In a recent raid, the Toad Busters caught one the size of a football, weighing almost two pounds and measuring more than a foot long!

FrogWatch puts all captured aliens on ice. A special process turns the toads non-toxic, and voila! into fertilizer.

The group's success is a happy ending in the making to what had been an environmental horror story.

Script by Dan Maxwell
Copyright 2007, Catalina Island Conservancy

<em>Photo courtesy of Froggydarb.</em>

Discovery Links

To learn more about today’s topic, please explore the links below:

• Group captures dog-sized 'monster' toad
• 42Explore: Invasives
• Invasive Species
• USDA Invasive Species Information Center