Killing cane toads

Bigboy

Arachnoprince
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Ughh, I had to euthanize a 5 gallon bucket load of cane toads this week. All found around the house I was staying at under only 5 rocks. It felt terrible to do it but they're such a noxious invasive that it was the only responsible thing to do.

I'm certain they won't be the last ones I put down either. Its such crap that they were introduced here.
 

Mack&Cass

Arachnoprince
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It is a shame that this has to happen to such a cool and interesting animal.
Unfortunately you are fighting a losing battle I think.
I wonder whether unlimited export (for the pet trade etc) of the species from Australia would help, although collection of this species would probably incidentally endanger other native species and the Aussie government doesn't want that.
It's too bad people can't eat them.

Mackenzie
 

Toirtis

Arachnobaron
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Some of the traps used to collect them are quite efficient, trapping 500+ toads each night....but when you consider that each female can lay up to 10,000 eggs per season, it takes a lot of nights of trapping to wipe out the yearly offspring of even one toad.

I hear the toads make for good compost after being processed.
 

pitbulllady

Arachnoking
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It's too bad OUR US Water and Hognose Snakes can't eat these things; I could promise you that IF they could, Australia would have a booming market selling frozen Cane Toads to US snake breeders! Many of us can't find native toads due to droughts, pesticides, etc., and those of us who keep amphibian-eating snakes often have a difficult time feeding our animals. I can't keep Eastern Hognoses because I can't find a steady and reliable food source for them, but unfortunately Cane Toads are very toxic to our native toad-eating snakes just like they are to most of the toad eaters in Australia.

Speaking of invasive species, I found out that Snakehead fish, which are a problem here in US fresh waterways, do not contain Thiaminaise and are safe for Water and Garter Snakes to eat, provided they aren't too large, so maybe that would be a money-making idea for those of you who have Snakeheads in the waters where you live here in the US! I'm sure that my Nerodia would be more than happy to put a big dent in the Snakehead population, lol. I've seen videos of Water Snakes eating young Bowfins(Amia calva-that's "Mudfish" to us Southerners and "Grinnels" to you Texans and "Choupiques" to y'all Cajuns and " AGGHHH! That &^%$in' SONUVA&^%$#@!" to anyone whose fingers wind up too close to the mouth of one of these fish), and if they can eat a Bowfin, they can sure eat a Snakehead!

pitbulllady
 

pouchedrat

Arachnolord
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speaking of snakeheads.. they were outlawed a couple years back, and I remember reading about this one guy who had been fighting to keep his pet snakehead that he has had for something like 10 years.
 

stevetastic

Arachnodemon
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It is a shame that this has to happen to such a cool and interesting animal.
Unfortunately you are fighting a losing battle I think.
I wonder whether unlimited export (for the pet trade etc) of the species from Australia would help, although collection of this species would probably incidentally endanger other native species and the Aussie government doesn't want that.
It's too bad people can't eat them.

Mackenzie

Not only would that endanger other native Aussie critters, it would also open the flood gates for cane toads becoming invasive everywhere. If they were to flood the market by the millions some would escape or be released and then you would have the same problem in another location.

also people can and do eat them but they have to be cut up correctly. its kinda like fugu i guess.
 

Mack&Cass

Arachnoprince
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also people can and do eat them but they have to be cut up correctly. its kinda like fugu i guess.
I thought I had heard this but I couldn't recall for sure so I didn't want to post it.

Mackenzie
 

Toirtis

Arachnobaron
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Speaking of invasive species, I found out that Snakehead fish, which are a problem here in US fresh waterways, do not contain Thiaminaise and are safe for Water and Garter Snakes to eat,

They make a good soup, too.
 

pitbulllady

Arachnoking
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They are already in the US pet trade...by the millions.
Beat me to it, lol. Yes, Cane Toads are widely sold in the US. They have only become established in south Florida, and they've been here for a long, long time. As is the case with Australia, they were imported deliberately to control the Cane Beetles which attack sugar cane, a big agricultural product in Florida. Like the Burmese Pythons, they are limited to south Florida because they are cold-intolerant and have no built-in instinct to hibernate or seek shelter during cold weather like our native herps, so climate has kept them from spreading anywhere else in spite of the fact that they are widely sold as pets and unfortunately, as a source of hallucinogenic drugs. The comparison to Fugu is more than passing, since there are people willing to risk death by licking the toads' toxic skin secretions to get high. Some states have actually had to pass laws outlawing "toad licking". Most that are sold are sold as pets, though, since people like the idea of having a toad that is the size of a smallish cat and will eat virtually anything you put in front of it, including dry dog food. For an amphibian, they are easy to care for, provided you have a large enough enclosure.

pitbulllady
 

pouchedrat

Arachnolord
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Yep!! Cane toads are pets here... I'd love one, honestly. Don't think I could house one right now, though.
 

dtknow

Arachnoking
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Kill em all, no holds barred.

Are even the little canes too toxic?
 

pitbulllady

Arachnoking
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Kill em all, no holds barred.

Are even the little canes too toxic?
Even the TADPOLES are toxic, before they emerge onto land as toads, BUT, like I said, they have only been able to establish themselves where the climate is similar to that of their native Central-South America, where it's hot all year round and there is plenty of water for them to breed in. In their native habitat, there are lots of animals that can eat them with no ill effects because they have evolved alongside the toads and have subsequently evolved means of dealing with the toxins. By the way, the US has several native toad species, including the Colorado River Toad and Rio Grand Toad which are just as toxic as Cane Toads. They just don't get quite as large, but should a dog mouth at one or a child pick one up and forget to wash his hands, the results can still be lethal. Of course, they too, have their predators and their natural controls in their native environments.

pitbulllady
 

stevetastic

Arachnodemon
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They are already in the US pet trade...by the millions.
I know that. I have 2. But if with an unrestricted export from Australia, where they are more numerous than they are even in their natural range and Florida where a lot of them are caught for the pet trade, there would be millions and millions more.

The problem was "Unlimited."
 

Toirtis

Arachnobaron
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I know that. I have 2. But if with an unrestricted export from Australia, where they are more numerous than they are even in their natural range and Florida where a lot of them are caught for the pet trade, there would be millions and millions more.

The problem was "Unlimited."

Its all good...you just could not hurt Florida's native biodiversity any worse...LOL
 

dtknow

Arachnoking
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Even the TADPOLES are toxic, before they emerge onto land as toads, BUT, like I said, they have only been able to establish themselves where the climate is similar to that of their native Central-South America, where it's hot all year round and there is plenty of water for them to breed in. In their native habitat, there are lots of animals that can eat them with no ill effects because they have evolved alongside the toads and have subsequently evolved means of dealing with the toxins. By the way, the US has several native toad species, including the Colorado River Toad and Rio Grand Toad which are just as toxic as Cane Toads. They just don't get quite as large, but should a dog mouth at one or a child pick one up and forget to wash his hands, the results can still be lethal. Of course, they too, have their predators and their natural controls in their native environments.

pitbulllady
gross, but neat! I saw cane toads when I was in Costa Rica but wow I would have never guessed they were that well protected.

Too bad it doesn't seem economically feasible to raise amphibians for feeders...even more so with the current concern of pathogens.
 
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