Cane toads that were once imported from the Americas to Australia to help control the sugarcane weevil, are now out of control and becoming pests. Panic also hit when it was reported that cane toads were approaching Sydney, a very important city there.
In late 2022, authorities in New South Wales were alerted after more than a dozen cane toads were found on private property an hour's drive from Sydney.
The cane toads were hunted and 17 of them were caught by the NSW government and a University of Newcastle team on the day. Two others have been found and investigations are underway into how the cane toads arrived in the area.
The cane toads, which are estimated to be in the billions in Australia, have not yet reached Sydney, concentrated in the Queensland area and several other states. Of course the government is trying not to let the cane toads bother Sydney residents.
It's not uncommon for one or two cane toads to arrive in another area by truck. But Agriculture Minister Dugald Saunders said the size of the colony near Sydney indicated there were many more. So, it is important for residents to monitor and report if they see it.
"Now is not the time to relax, cane toads pose a significant risk to our domestic and native fauna and it is vital that we keep them away from NSW," he said.
Rick Shine, an academic at Macquarie University, said the frog had become adept at getting into the back of a truck or even on someone's shoe. "They show up everywhere, in someone's luggage getting off the airport in Canberra, even on the top of Mount Kosciuszko," he said.
So it's not uncommon for one or two cane toads to be found in a location far from their area. Shine said in recent years the threat of cane toads spreading across Sydney was prevented thanks to quick community action.
