The Cane Toad is a member of the amphibian family and is also one of the larger toads. It originally came from Hawaii and was brought to Australia to try to exterminate a pest that was destroying sugar cane crops in Queensland. 

Offensives and Defences

The Cane Toad has only one offence and it can kill a Crocodile. This very powerful offence is located in two 'pouches' on top of the animal's shoulders and doesn't look to be harmful at all, they seem to blend in with the skin. The pouches contain a toxic poison and if attacked and killed it will kill the animal that tried to kill the toad. 

The defences of the cane toad include excreting the poison harboured in it's shoulders and/ or running away from it's attacker. 

 Reproduction

Cane Toads breed in massive numbers one female laying between 30 000 and 40 000 eggs at a time. They also have a huge sex drive and being able to breed in such numbers the Cane Toad may soon populate the entire of Australia. Females lay their eggs in huge strands and a total lake or pond can be filled with these eggs (see picture below).

Sounds of the Cane Toad

Below is the croak of a Cane Toad which is different and easily recognizable from many other toads and/ or frogs because of how high pitched it is.

Specialized Features of the Cane Toad

There are not many specialized attributes for the Cane Toad other than the toxic poison it has developed. The other feature that the Cane Toad has is it's skin which it breathes through. It does this by extracting the oxygen out of the moisture that covers it's body, this is why all frogs and toads need to be in a moist area or they would die.

Preferred Climates

The Cane Toad, as an amphibian, likes a moist climate with easy access to a pond or lake. This fondness for a wet climate also affects the temperature at which a Cane Toad can happily live, this temperature ranges from the high twenties to the low thirties.

Diet

The Cane Toad is a carnivore and will eat basically anything that can fit into it's huge mouth, this includes bugs to small rodents.

 

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