Australia: 2.7kg Giant Cane Toad Discovered

Australian rangers have discovered a giant cane toad in the scrub of a coastal park – a brown specimen as long as a human arm and weighing 2.7kg.

The toad was spotted after wildlife officers were driving through Conway National Park in Queensland when a snake slithered across the path, forcing wildlife officers to stop.

“I bent down and caught the chariot. I couldn’t believe the size and weight of it,” said ranger Kylie Gray, describing her discovery of the waterfall last week.

“A cane toad of this size will eat anything it can fit in its mouth, including insects, reptiles and small mammals,” he explained.

An invasive species animal was taken and euthanized.

Cane toads were introduced to Queensland in 1935 to control the proliferation of certain beetles, which had devastating effects on local wildlife.

At 2.7kg, almost the weight of a newborn human, the toad could break the record for the largest specimen of the species, according to the Queensland Department of Environment and Science.

Described as a ‘monster’, the department said it would end up at the Queensland Museum.

Because of its size, rangers believe it is a female.

Although its age is unknown, “it’s been around for a long time,” Ms Gray said, explaining that amphibians in the wild have a lifespan of 15 years.

Female cane toads can produce up to 30,000 eggs in a season. These animals are highly venomous, causing local extermination of some of their predators.