The Cane Toad

My father recently returned from a trip to Australia where he encountered the story of the Cane Toad. He retold it to me in great detail last night on the phone. Here it is:

The first 102 cane toads, native to Central and South America, were introduced into the Australian eco-system in 1935 by the Bureau of Sugar Experiment Stations in an attempt to control the native cane beetle (Dermolepida albohirtum) that was destroying the sugar cane. Releases were then banned for a short period of time due to environmental concerns, but in 1936, another 62,000 toadlets were released into the wild. The toxic cane toad, weighing up to 1.8 kg, now numbers approximately 1.5 billion according to the Sydney Morning Herald and has had devastating and strange effects on local biodiversity, while not having any impact whatsoever on the population of the cane beetle. The cane toads have also undergone some changes themselves, evolving larger legs, using roads to travel, and thereby traveling farther and faster than previously known. As a consequence, approximately 10% of the leading edge cane toads have developed arthritis.

Cane toad sports have developed in areas where the species is common, such as cane toad golf and cane toad cricket, using the cane toads as balls. My father apparently also saw an exhibit of stuffed cane toads re-enacting Napoleonic battle scenes. These might have been by the artist and taxidermist Kevin Ladynski, who made these elaborate tableaux:

If you want to know more about the cane toad, most definitely watch Mark Lewis’ Cane Toads: An Unnatural History of 1988, a huge hit in Australia and “clever piece of gonzo wildlife filmmaking,” featuring, among many other protagonists, Monica Kraus singing lullabies to her pet cane toad in German. The entire film can be found on youtube (see links below), and in 2010 was followed by the sequel Cane Toads: The Conquest, Australia’s first 3D digital film.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mvV8OT-mmE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6ERCHFlN1A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8MZtzEoiTY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqCQO_cRypg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtMtIItimjQ