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Cane toad
- Cane toad (Bufo marinus)
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- Cane toads are not declared
General information
The cane toad (Bufo marinus) is not a declared pest in Queensland and there is no legal requirement to control them.
They were introduced in 1935 to control agricultural pests, but proved ineffective. For the past 60 years, cane toads have been expanding their territory in Australia and are capable of colonising at least four of the mainland Australian states.
| Scientific name |
Bufo marinus |
| Impacts |
- produces a highly toxic venom from glands in its skin
- can cause death if ingested by domestic and most native animals
- is a voracious feeder, consuming a wide variety of insects, frogs, small reptiles, mammals and even birds
- has been known to transmit diseases such as salmonella
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| Description |
- can grow up to 20 cm in length
- adults are large and heavily built
- a definite visor or awning extends over each eye and a high angular bony ridge extends from the eyes to the nose
- colouring on the upper surface may be brown, olive-brown or reddish-brown while underneath the toad varies from white to yellow and is usually mottled
- brown warts are present on all cane toads; however, males possess more than females
- eggs are laid in long, gelatinous 'strings' with the developing tadpoles appearing as a row of small black dots
- a single clutch can contain up to 35,000 eggs
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| Habitat and life cycle |
- generally encountered at night near any source of light
- ground-dwelling, being poor climbers and unable to jump very high
- found in Queensland, the Northern Territory and New South Wales
- mating occurs at any time of year and is only dependent on available food and permanent water
- under ideal conditions, toadlets may reach adult size within a year
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| Control |
- freezing is considered a humane form of treatment
- a fence, at least 50 cm high, will protect native fish and frog ponds
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| Declaration details |
- not a declared species under Queensland legislation but may be declared under local government law
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| Further information |
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Page maintained by Sonia Jordan
Last updated 01 February 2012
