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I guess what I'm trying to say is as much as I would love to protect the native wild life of Australia. No matter how emotional we get about this it won't solve anythig. All of the current methods of control are completely useless and effort using them would be better spent on something else.

There are plenty of environmental problems that could be solved with investment.
 
The problem is, toad numbers are limited by ecological factors not breeding rates. Every female toad can have up to 40000 offspring. But almost all of these die because the environment can't support them. Unless a toad muster can kill every single toad in a region, all you are doing is making room for more toads.

I actually have an optimistic view about the whole issue. Toads have done damage, there is no denying than but in regions where they have been a long time the native species have begun to adapt.



Any papers on this mate? I'd be very interested to know what was happening in heavily affected eco systems.
 
i dunno about a truckload but there are a hell of a lot that get brought in....they have prizes for the biggest toad etc.....you get some monsters!:)

Imagine if this was done on a regular basis everywhere???
Well it will not eradicate them but certianly cut thier numbers back a bit & with a bit of publicity it might be a start??

The real awnser is technology through scientific institutes such as C.S.I.R.O if there is any institute like this left after the Gov't has decimated this type of research over the last couple of decades.

Cheers
Ian
 
What if seriously depleting Cane toad numbers rather than eradicating them actually slowed down the rate at which native animals adapt to their presence, consequently making extinction more likely or rapid?
 
send the refugees into toad infested areas, get the job done they can stay, fail, they go.
besides...as far as im aware they got rid of them at port macquarie through musters

i personally think its an international conspiracy...the chinese will invade australia and any edible wildlife will be gone for anyone wanting to live bush.

is it not safe to assume that wildlife will adapt to natural changing conditions as wildlife has done for millions of years...cane toad being a prime example with its introduction to australia facing new challenges...they have evolved to suit the conditions better

maybe some species will go as there time is up...others will adapt

the lack of replies on such a pressing issue on a REPTILE/AMPHIBIAN/NATIVE ANIMAL/PEOPLE WHO SHOULD GIVE A DAMN! website just goes to prove that people just dont give two hoots.

and the lack of an optimistic thought process in the few replies that are here goes to show that humans just give up to easily on something that seems to not involve humanity in present time.

You mate are a clown who has done no serious investigation of the issue. The fact you think writing to a politician will fix anything hints at a case of cranium void. The rest of your rant confirms it.
 
What if seriously depleting Cane toad numbers rather than eradicating them actually slowed down the rate at which native animals adapt to their presence, consequently making extinction more likely or rapid?

I have trouble understanding that you really believe this adaptation theory.
Take a look at some Nat geo programs & research outcomes from time to time.
Snakes & Lizards found dead with cane toads still in thier mouth. Quoll field researchers saying that the numbers are in fast decline due to the finding that quolls have been found with toad pioson.

GET REAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
A real life scientician told me changes in fire regimes in the top end have probably had more severe negative impacts than toads. If you want to learn about the real impacts of cane toads go to the link snake pimp put up or google Rick shine and look at the milliOn + papers his lab has published in the area.
 
Imagine if this was done on a regular basis everywhere???
Well it will not eradicate them but certianly cut thier numbers back a bit & with a bit of publicity it might be a start??
Ian

Did you not read my previous post. A female can produce 40 000 offspring. If you kill 90% of them which I think is an unreasonable number you are just giving the surviving toads an unbelievable fitness advantage.
 
Well I hope that I am wrong.
I would hate to hear in years to come that maybe Ian davo was right, but now we have lost those species, maybe how can we fix it up & where do we go from here?????? EVOLUTION will fix it.

Cheers
 
I think a few people should just do some basic cane toad searches in Google scholar, the results will answer most of the questions that have been asked. As well as explain the basics of ecology and toads, and how the biggest killer of cane toads is cane toads(have a look into cane toad survival rates). It is worth noting that to date nothing has gone extinct due to cane toads, there are much bigger threats - cats and foxes - have a look into the small mammals and critical weight range, or just look in the Australian mammal field guide and look at how many species previous range compares to current range. Or just note that Australia has the highest mammal extinction rate in the world.
Back to toads, everyone wants to do something about them, but lets be completely honest we can't. toads are here, there spreading and all we can do is slow them. When they hit the kimberleys there will be massive declines in frog eating species. will anything go extinct? wait and see. The government spent millions trying to develop methods to get rid of them, and realized it was going nowhere and stopped. Toads have decimated wildlife populations but animals are adapting, e.g. birds flip toads over, crocodiles have been seen to "wash" them before eating, snake head size has apparently changed (there is a paper on this).
There is nothing we can do now but watch them slowly march across the country
 
bob brown...you gutless prime minister you. do something old man. your meant to be all over it like flies to a dead sheep.

When Julia Gillard hand over the top job? I try to read as many papers as I can but I missed that story. Google shows nothing. am I going crazy??

i live in townsville, pretty much smack bang in the middle of the cane toad heart land and every year we have a day where everyone in the town is urged to collect as many toads as they can....it has quite a big following and gets good results. something like this done statewide would have a huge impact on their numbers,

I love this, have read about it before. Agree if it could be done statewide imagine how low everybodies golf handicap would be. =]

I wish I could take part. :-(
 
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I think a few people should just do some basic cane toad searches in Google scholar, the results will answer most of the questions that have been asked. As well as explain the basics of ecology and toads, and how the biggest killer of cane toads is cane toads(have a look into cane toad survival rates). It is worth noting that to date nothing has gone extinct due to cane toads, there are much bigger threats - cats and foxes - have a look into the small mammals and critical weight range, or just look in the Australian mammal field guide and look at how many species previous range compares to current range. Or just note that Australia has the highest mammal extinction rate in the world.
Back to toads, everyone wants to do something about them, but lets be completely honest we can't. toads are here, there spreading and all we can do is slow them. When they hit the kimberleys there will be massive declines in frog eating species. will anything go extinct? wait and see. The government spent millions trying to develop methods to get rid of them, and realized it was going nowhere and stopped. Toads have decimated wildlife populations but animals are adapting, e.g. birds flip toads over, crocodiles have been seen to "wash" them before eating, snake head size has apparently changed (there is a paper on this).
There is nothing we can do now but watch them slowly march across the country


I think you need to research what Mr Davo has said, because he is right and most other people think so, but they hope he is wrong, though I'm sure we shall oneday in years to come realize that he was in fact right, and we will all wish we had wacked a toad a day and contributed more to the destruction of the toad than just commented on a forum that something needs to be done.

http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/reptile-news-5375/cane-toads-threaten-iconic-king-162833/
 
What it appears is there's two sides to an evenly spread argument...

On one side (which I follow) all animals will adapt, and quickly, to the toad invasion.

On the other side, death and destruction to all those that have amphibians in their diets...

So far the evidence in my old haunts of Gordonvale (the release point of the toad some 80 years ago) have shown no animals turning up dead because they've noshed down on a toad... I have however seen dead snakes, marsupials, and other animals on the roads - it appears cars have done this though. Without correct toxicology reports I guess we'll never know if they ate a toad then stumbled on the road feeling sick...

I guess the point is - (and this really is the end point) - toads are here to stay, we have to adapt and perhaps, if we can, help our native animals also adapt.

Removal of toads is still an important past time - but there is huge contention, even amongst reptile lovers, on how to successfully remove a toad from the food chain.

Diseases in the past have shown they do not work (rabbit calici virus is one that springs to mind).

So the quoll school (shown on Catalyst) is one approach where prevention is the best cure....

I'm afraid we just need to live with our mistakes of our cane farmers in Gordonvale and we all need to do our bit to help our natives survive....

One way is - we can look at what we do to encroach on their land just as much as the toad does...

My firm belief is there is way worse than the toad out there endangering our natives... the toad is but - just one (of them)!
 
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