---
title: "What the sources say about the Cane Toad | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "52 claims from the Cane Toad profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/cane-toad-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/cane-toad/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Cane Toad (*Rhinella marina*)

> 52 claims from the Cane Toad profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Cane Toad](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/cane-toad/)

## Rhinella marina (Cane Toad). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Rhinella_marina/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Carnivore and insectivore; ants, beetles and earwigs, plus dragonflies, grasshoppers, true bugs, crustaceans, gastropods, plant matter and even dog and cat food | It feeds on ants, beetles, and earwigs in southern Florida, but has been found with dragonflies, grasshoppers, truebugs, crustaceans, gastropods, plant matter and even dog and cat food in their stomachs |
| which may cause profuse salivation, twitching, vomiting, shallow breathing and collapse of the hind limbs in predators | they may cause profuse salivation, twitching, vomiting; shallow breathing and collapse of the hind limbs. |
| and even death in some of them, including dogs | This toxin can cause temporary paralysis or even death in some predators, including dogs. |
| is native from Texas's Rio Grande Valley south to the central Amazon and southeastern Peru | The natural range of Bufo marinus is from the Rio Grande Valley of Texas south to the Central Amazon and southeastern Peru. |
| Animal Diversity Web gives an average mass of 106.25 grams | Average mass 106.25 g |
| It forages at night, and a southern Florida study found ants, beetles and earwigs in its diet, along with crustaceans, snails and even dog and cat food | forages primarily nocturnally in mature forests and roadways. It feeds on ants, beetles, and earwigs in southern Florida, but has been found with dragonflies, grasshoppers, truebugs, crustaceans, gastropods, plant matter and even dog and cat food in their stomachs (note: the whole diet list is Krakauer 1968, a southern Florida study, so the page keeps that scope) |
| A pair of huge parotoid glands stretches from each eardrum halfway down the toad's back | Bufo marinus possesses huge paratoid glands stretching from the anterior side of the tympanum to halfway down the back. (note: tympanum given as its common name, eardrum; the source's direction (anterior side) is dropped rather than reversed) |
| oozing a thick white fluid when the toad is confronted by a predator | When confronted by a predator, it is able to secrete bufotoxin from the paratoid and other glands on the back in the form of white viscous fluid. |
| Animal Diversity Web says the toxin may cause profuse salivation, twitching, vomiting, shallow breathing and collapse of the hind limbs, and even death in some predators, including dogs | they may cause profuse salivation, twitching, vomiting; shallow breathing and collapse of the hind limbs. This toxin can cause temporary paralysis or even death in some predators, including dogs. |
| Animal Diversity Web notes no evidence the toad has controlled any pest in Australia, where it is now considered a pest species itself | there is no evidence that it has controlled any pest in Australia and it is now considered a pest species itself in its introduced range of Australia |
| The eggs hatch in two to seven days | The eggs hatch in 2 to 7 days. |
| a cane toad's parotoid glands release a thick white fluid | When confronted by a predator, it is able to secrete bufotoxin from the paratoid and other glands on the back in the form of white viscous fluid. |
| the toxins may cause profuse salivation, twitching, vomiting, shallow breathing and collapse of the hind limbs | they may cause profuse salivation, twitching, vomiting; shallow breathing and collapse of the hind limbs. |
| the toxin can cause temporary paralysis or even death in some predators, including dogs | This toxin can cause temporary paralysis or even death in some predators, including dogs. |
| dangerLevel: Medium | Negative Impacts injures humans poisonous (note: task #625; was High. Medium is 'Can injure, but rarely seriously'. ADW's row is 'injures humans' and Business Queensland adds only 'can harm domestic animals if eaten' and salmonella transmission; no cached source reports a human death, so Deadly is not supported, and a passive skin secretion is not 'dangerous when cornered' (High).) |
| weightKg: 0.106 | Average mass 106.25 g (note: task #625; Light class (0.1 to 10 kg). The name guess had no rule for 'toad'.) |
| tags: toxic-chemical | When confronted by a predator, it is able to secrete bufotoxin from the paratoid and other glands on the back in the form of white viscous fluid. (note: task #625; replaces 'venomous', which tagMetadata.ts defines as delivered 'through fangs, stingers, spurs, or harpoons'. ADW's own row is 'poisonous'.) |

## Cane Toad. Australian Museum.

https://australian.museum/learn/animals/frogs/cane-toad/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| shoulder glands whose toxins often kill the Australian native predators that try to eat it | Adults have large parotid glands on the shoulders, which secrete toxins when the toad is under threat. These toxins often kill Australian native predators that try to eat the toad |
| Large parotoid glands on the shoulders secrete toxins when the toad is under threat | Adults have large parotid glands on the shoulders, which secrete toxins when the toad is under threat. |
| The Australian Museum calls it a very large toad, up to 15 centimeters in body length and occasionally 25 | A very large species of toad reaching up to 15 cm in body length, and occasionally attaining 25 cm. |
| Shoulder-Mounted Poison Factory | Adults have large parotid glands on the shoulders |
| Australia's Bureau of Sugar Experiment Stations imported about 100 cane toads from Hawaii to a research station near Cairns | The Australian Bureau of Sugar Experimental Stations imported about 100 toads from Hawaii to the Meringa Experimental Station near Cairns. |
| hoping they would eat the cane beetles whose grubs chew the roots of Queensland's sugarcane | Cane Toads were introduced to Australia to eat...the Greyback Cane Beetle. The...larvae of these beetles eat the roots of sugar cane and kill or stunt the plants. |
| The toads bred quickly, and more than 3,000 were released into north Queensland's cane plantations in July 1935 | The toads bred quickly and more than 3000 were released in the sugar cane plantations of north Queensland in July 1935. |
| It has spread through most of Queensland, west into the Northern Territory and the Kimberley in Western Australia, and south to the mid-north coast of New South Wales | since then has spread very rapidly throughout most of QLD, west through the northern NT to the Kimberley region in WA, as well as south to the mid north coast of NSW. |
| tadpoles can become toads in a month, or in ten days in warm shallow water | take one month to develop into toads, although tadpoles in colder areas can take longer, and tadpoles in warm shallow water can develop in just 10 days. |
| The Australian Bureau of Sugar Experiment Stations imported about 100 cane toads from Hawaii to a research station near Cairns | The Australian Bureau of Sugar Experimental Stations imported about 100 toads from Hawaii to the Meringa Experimental Station near Cairns. |
| more than 3,000 were released into north Queensland's sugar cane plantations in July 1935 | The toads bred quickly and more than 3000 were released in the sugar cane plantations of north Queensland in July 1935. |
| to eat the cane beetles whose grubs chew the roots of sugar cane and kill or stunt the plants | Cane Toads were introduced to Australia to eat...the Greyback Cane Beetle. The...larvae of these beetles eat the roots of sugar cane and kill or stunt the plants. |
| turned loose in Queensland in 1935 to eat cane beetles | more than 3000 were released in the sugar cane plantations of north Queensland in July 1935 |

## Cane toad. Business Queensland, Queensland Government.

https://www.business.qld.gov.au/industries/farms-fishing-forestry/agriculture/biosecurity/animals/invasive/other/cane-toad

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Tropical and subtropical lowlands near fresh water, plus tropical savanna, grassland, disturbed forest, forest edges, farmland and urban areas | commonly found in tropical and subtropical lowlands close to freshwater breeding areas...Also found in urban and urban fringe areas, tropical savannas, grasslands, disturbed forests, forest edges, forests with limited understorey and agricultural areas. |
| It lives at least 5 years in the wild, up to 15 in captivity | Lives at least 5 years in the wild, up to 15 years in captivity. |
| They proved ineffective, Business Queensland says | They proved ineffective in this role, but adapted well to the Australian environment and spread quickly. |
| A female lays up to 35,000 eggs in a single clutch, in long gelatinous strings | Lays eggs in long gelatinous 'strings'...Lays up to 35,000 eggs in a single clutch. |

## Rhinella marina. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2023: e.T100099625A2951416.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2023-1.rlts.t100099625a2951416.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Least Concern | IUCN Red List category: Least Concern (LC). |

## Hudson et al. (2016). Constructing an Invasion Machine: The Rapid Evolution of a Dispersal-Enhancing Phenotype During the Cane Toad Invasion of Australia. PLOS ONE.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0156950

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| over an 80-year period the toads' rate of invasion across tropical Australia rose from around 15 to 60 kilometers a year | As cane toads (Rhinella marina) have spread across tropical Australia over an 80-year period, their rate of invasion has increased from around 15 to 60 km per annum. |
| Toads at the front disperse much faster and further than those in the range core | Toads at the invasion front disperse much faster and further than conspecifics from range-core areas, and their offspring inherit that rapid dispersal rate. |
| Three-dimensional analysis of their bones found wider forelimbs, narrower hindlimbs and more compact skulls at the front | by conducting three-dimensional morphometric analyses of toads from both range-core and invasion-front populations. Morphology of heads, limbs, pectoral girdles and pelvic girdles differed significantly between toads from the two areas, ranging from 0.5% to 16.5% difference in mean bone dimensions between populations, with invasion-front toads exhibiting wider forelimbs, narrower hindlimbs and more compact skulls. |
| changes that plausibly reflect more bounding, many short hops in quick succession, rather than separate large leaps | Those changes plausibly reflect an increased reliance on bounding (multiple short hops in quick succession) rather than separate large leaps. |
| suit bounding, many short hops in quick succession rather than one big leap | Those changes plausibly reflect an increased reliance on bounding (multiple short hops in quick succession) rather than separate large leaps. (note: task #625; vibe.reason mechanism.) |
| its wider forelimbs and narrower hindlimbs | with invasion-front toads exhibiting wider forelimbs, narrower hindlimbs and more compact skulls. (note: task #625; vibe.reason.) |
| the front's advance rose from around 15 to 60 kilometers a year | As cane toads (Rhinella marina) have spread across tropical Australia over an 80-year period, their rate of invasion has increased from around 15 to 60 km per annum. (note: task #625; vibe.reason.) |

## Crossland, Alford & Shine (2008). Impact of the invasive cane toad (Bufo marinus) on an Australian frog (Opisthodon ornatus) depends on minor variation in reproductive timing. Oecologia.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-008-1167-y

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A study of the Australian frog Opisthodon ornatus found that eating the toad's toxic eggs reduced the native tadpoles' survival | Predation on toxic toad eggs reduced the survival of O. ornatus and B. marinus. |
| though survivors grew more rapidly and turned into larger frogs | The consequent reduction in tadpole densities allowed the remaining O. ornatus tadpoles to grow more rapidly and to metamorphose at larger body sizes (>60% disparity in mean mass). |

## Ward-Fear et al. (2024). Teacher toads: Buffering apex predators from toxic invaders in a remote tropical landscape. Conservation Letters.

https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.13012

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Small-scale trials show vulnerable predators can learn to drop toads from their diets | Small-scale trials show that vulnerable predators exposed to small (nonlethal) toads can learn to delete toads from their diets, increasing survival of those predators after toads invade. |
| researchers released more than 200,000 toad eggs, tadpoles and toadlets, too small to deliver a fatal dose, ahead of the invasion front | Small-scale trials show that vulnerable predators exposed to small (nonlethal) toads can learn to delete toads from their diets, increasing survival of those predators after toads invade. We deployed this method in the remote Kimberley region of tropical Australia, with >200,000 eggs, tadpoles, or metamorph toads released in advance of the expanding toad invasion front. (note: 'toadlets' is the paper's 'metamorph toads'; 'too small to deliver a fatal dose' is its 'small (nonlethal) toads') |
| Camera surveys found large monitor lizards almost wiped out on control plots but abundant where the "teacher toads" had been laid out | Remote camera surveys before and after "teacher toad" deployment showed that large monitor lizards (Varanus panoptes) were almost extirpated from control plots but remained abundant in treatment plots |
| Small-scale trials show that vulnerable predators exposed to small, nonlethal toads can learn to drop toads from their diets | Small-scale trials show that vulnerable predators exposed to small (nonlethal) toads can learn to delete toads from their diets, increasing survival of those predators after toads invade. |
| researchers released more than 200,000 "teacher toads", eggs, tadpoles and toadlets, ahead of the expanding invasion front | We deployed this method in the remote Kimberley region of tropical Australia, with >200,000 eggs, tadpoles, or metamorph toads released in advance of the expanding toad invasion front. (note: 'toadlets' is the paper's 'metamorph toads') |
| camera surveys found large monitor lizards almost wiped out on control plots but still abundant on treatment plots | Remote camera surveys before and after "teacher toad" deployment showed that large monitor lizards (Varanus panoptes) were almost extirpated from control plots but remained abundant in treatment plots |

## Indigo et al. (2023). Can conditioned taste aversion be deployed at a landscape level to mitigate the impact of invasive cane toads on northern quolls? Wildlife Research.

https://doi.org/10.1071/wr21151

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| a trial baiting northern quolls into avoiding toads backfired, with a 94% drop in quoll numbers at treatment sites against 65% at controls | We observed a 65% reduction in quoll population size at control sites and a 94% reduction at treatment sites: a significant effect of aversion training, but in the direction opposite to that expected. |
| Most animals, the researchers found, were no longer averse within 120 days of training | Our trials indicate that most animals are no longer averse within 120 days post-training. |