* OLD * - Identifying cane toads

Make sure it's and cane toad and not a native frog!

Image source: Department of Environment and Conservation, Western Australia (see Is it a cane toad? Identifying toads - pdf 672KB)

Latin name	Cane toad (Rhinella marina) formerly Bufo marinus
Appearance	Heavy-built amphibian with warty dry skin. Range in colour from yellow to grey. Large paratoid glands on each shoulder behind the eardrum. Sit upright and move in short rapid hops. Front feet unwebbed and hind feet have leathery webbing between the toes. Smaller toads can be less easily identified. Often have smooth darker skin and blotches with less conspicuous paratoid glands.
Size	Adult toads are usually very large (9-15cm long). Largest female recorded at 24cm long and 1.3 kg in Queensland.
Activity	Mainly nocturnal foraging. Often found sheltering under rocks and logs, in depressions and under vegetation during cold or hot weather.
Breeding	Breed September to March in still flowing water often tangling the spawn over rocks or water plants. May breed twice per year.
Eggs	Quite distinctive from native frogs eggs as they are laid in long chains - bead like appearance, encased in tube of jelly, 8,000 to 35,000 eggs in one location. Eggs hatch in 48-72 hours
Tadpoles	Very shiny uniform black colour, tail rounded at tip, body up to 11mm in length and tail 13-16mm long. Tadpoles may form large slow moving groups.
Call	Males have a very distinctive call likened to a motor running or brrrrr sounds. Listen to the call online (CLICK HERE - mp3) (available at http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/pestsweeds/IdentifyingACaneToad.htm)