# Dog-sized toad found in Australia



## Allegra (Mar 27, 2007)

OMG !  BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Dog-sized toad found in Australia


'They are prolific breeders. Some estimates put their number as high as 200 million. 
What is beyond doubt is their effect on the environment. 
They have poisoned countless native animals, including crocodiles which have died after eating them. The population of some snakes, lizards and small marsupials have also suffered greatly.'


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## Joel007 (Mar 27, 2007)

Poor Australians, their ecosystem always seems to have multiple crises at any one time.


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## Curt Chiarelli (Mar 27, 2007)

Ha! And Texans delude themselves into believing they've cornered the market on the Munchausian and monster-sized! One detail that bothers me about this article is the use of the term "reptile" to describe the cane toad. It is an amphibian. 

And I just love the municipal government's recommendation for the preferred instrument of disposal: a golf club. Nice touch guys!* FOUR!!!*


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## Allegra (Mar 27, 2007)

I hope some people won't develop a fondness and adopt the big slimy things as pet! Imagine them leaping in the street on a leash or roaming in the parks!


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## Curt Chiarelli (Mar 27, 2007)

For some reason Allegra I have visions of those toads eating poodles and chomping into the shanks of small children . . . .


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## Allegra (Mar 27, 2007)

LOL but then there will be specially designed muzzles for them. The pet product industry will be more than happy to push out alll sort of things to keep them busy, healthy and happy such as snacks toys stylish costumes, etc. (so long as they don't take the killer food produced by that big pet food company recently in spotlight), more dollers rolling in...


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## Curt Chiarelli (Mar 27, 2007)

Mmmmmm, bug-shaped plastic chew toys! 

I feel the rumblings of a low-budget Nature-On-the-Rampage-Ecological-Disaster movie beginning to form . . . . (And no, that's not the Cajun-style frog legs I had for dinner last night.) Perhaps some hopelessly undertalented scrivener in Hollywood will seize upon this news article and adapt it into a Roger Corman-style exploitation flick called _WARTS. _


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## Dave (Mar 27, 2007)

Are you sure they aren't Teenage Mutant Ninja Hero Frogs?


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## Curt Chiarelli (Mar 27, 2007)

Dave said:


> Are you sure they aren't Teenage Mutant Ninja Hero Frogs?



Could be Dave, if we had a bigger budget for all the props and special effects work!


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## Allegra (Mar 27, 2007)

And any ideas who would be the best to write the wacky soundtracks?


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## Dave (Mar 27, 2007)

Sir Paul McCartney's Frog Chorus (We All Stand Together)


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## Allegra (Mar 27, 2007)

Dave said:


> Sir Paul McCartney's Frog Chorus (We All Stand Together)


 
 LMAO !


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## gigantes (Mar 27, 2007)

i hope people don't get into the habit of killing just any old toads in their zeal to exterminate.

amphibians are going extinct all over the world as it is.

@joel,
yea, totally... oz has so many problems of this nature already, such as armies of overbreeding cats and rabbits as well as a horrid disease that's eating tasmanian devils alive as well as the last of the cute little owl parrots being wiped out by introduced norway rats.


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## Culhwch (Mar 27, 2007)

Not to mention Asian geckos forcing native geckos out of their territory.

I'm not sure we have any native toads, so I say kill 'em all. Ugly little bastards. I know that's not a great reason for exterminating a species, but if it's the toads or everything else... It's interesting to see that some native species are adapting their behaviour to deal with them - crows for instance have developed a technique where they flip the toad over and eat the innards, steering clear of the poison sacks.


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## Talysia (Mar 27, 2007)

"Toadzilla" is a good name for him.  It's a shame that the environmental balance is so out of kilter, though.


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## The Ace (Mar 27, 2007)

Ummm, it was self-inflicted, remember.  The crazy thing is that they've been trying to eradicate the sods for years (It's commom practice to drive over one if you see it on the road) with conspicuous lack of success.


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## Allegra (Mar 27, 2007)

Talysia said:


> "Toadzilla" is a good name for him. It's a shame that the environmental balance is so out of kilter, though.


 
Yes! 'Toadzilla' will make a perfect title for the motion picture to keep the 'zilla' series going.  The environmental balance is really a funny thing, I've heard some lovable species are over populated in oz - kangaroos, koala bears, certain type of cockatoos (some farmers even shoot at them because they destroy crops, but hey, they are the most beautiful and adorable cockatoos!)...


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## Talysia (Mar 27, 2007)

Oh, I know it was self-inflicted, Ace. It's just a shame it had to come to that in the first place. Lol, I guess I'm too soft.

Toadzilla:  The movie!  A giant frog causing mayhem and havoc as it hops across the city? Lol!


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## Dave (Mar 28, 2007)

> _from AOL News_
> 
> As part of its so-called "Toad Buster'' project, Frogwatch conducts regular raids on local water holes, blinding the toads with bright lights then scooping them up by the dozen.
> 
> ...


That doesn't make a good ending for _Toadzilla: The Movie_. I would expect him to climb Sydney Harbour Bridge or the Royal Opera House, before being attacked by bi-planes and falling into the sea.


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## Culhwch (Mar 28, 2007)

The Opera House might be a bit low for a biplane-Toadzilla shootout...


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## gigantes (Mar 28, 2007)

i found a toad-sized dog in my backyard yesterday and wasn't sure what to do with it.


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## Allegra (Mar 28, 2007)

Culhwch said:


> The Opera House might be a bit low for a biplane-Toadzilla shootout...


 
Cul, watch out when you are strolling in the streets, it's getting serious - BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Toads' Australian march quickens


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## Culhwch (Mar 28, 2007)

They've been rampant in these parts since before I was even born, unfortunately. I love that it'll be winter soon because it means no toads for a few months...


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