Rhinella marina
Description
Cane Toads (Rhinella marina; formerly Bufo marinus) are the largest toads in the world and are an invasive species in Australia. They can grow up to 23cm long and weigh an average of up to 1.8kg. In 1935, 101 Cane Toads were imported from Hawaii, USA, to begin a breeding program in Cairns, North Queensland. Soon after, 3000 toads were released into sugar cane plantations in various locations throughout Queensland. It was hoped that the toad would eat sugar cane beetles and their larvae that were destroying the sugar cane crops in northern NSW and Queensland. However, the attempt failed to stop the beetle. Since that time Cane Toad populations have rapidly multiplied and they have become a pest that has spread through Queensland, into the Northern Territory, and further south in New South Wales.
Adaptations
- Poisonous glands behind their ears used for defence against predators.
- The eggs, tadpoles and adult Cane Toads are all highly toxic to Australian native animals if eaten.
- Eat anything they can catch and swallow, dead or alive, including other Cane Toads.
- Take over the shelters of geckos, skinks and other small lizards.
Feeding relationships
- What I eat: Frogs, lizards, small mammals, insects, other Cane Toads (dead or alive), pet food
- What eats me: Black kite (bird of prey), meat ants, Saw-shelled turtle, Torresian Crow.
Interesting facts
A female Cane Toad lays up to 30,000 eggs twice each year for 10 years, but only 0.5% survive to become adults.