Cane Toads - why such a menace?

[Lotte*pearce]

Just read an already answered question in this section about Cane Toads being a menace. In the answer it said most austrailians consider it ok to kill them when they see one because of the destruction they cause. So my answer is what is it that these Cane Toads do that's so awful? I've never heard of them before.

[sft42]

They don't actually do that much per toad but as they aren't an indigenous species to the antipodes they have no predators and the sheer weight of numbers of the things get to be a problem......It would be like the UK being over run by loads of koalas.

[Cetti]

Once again man has to be blamed for this problem!

Cane Toads were introduced into Australia from South America in the 1850's in the hope of eradicating the Cane Beetle on the sugar cane crop. But, like all meddling with nature the experiment went drastically wrong as the toads were unable to catch the beetles - so left the fields to wreak havoc elswhere.

Every part of this creature (skin, eggs et.) is highly toxic so they have no predators. Any thing that comes in contact with a toad will die, even cats or dogs that have drunk from the water where a toad has bathed.

There have been quite a few TV programmes on this problem, try and catch one, as they're worth watching.

[bobbobley]

some of my aussie friends use them as handy golfing practice - apparently they fly quite far!

[norfolk boy]

Apparently you have to run them over head first as the pop lets you know you've killed it,as an ex resident of our main prison colony has informed me