KINGSTON WHIG-STANDARD 02 June 04 Australian city bracing for toxic invader (Nick Squires, The Daily Telegraph)
They're large, fat, warty and deeply unloved, and they threaten to ruin the cherished outdoor lifestyle of Australia's tropical north.
Cane toads, brought from South America to Queensland in the 1930s in a failed attempt to control sugar-cane beetles, are now advancing on Darwin, capital of the Northern Territory.
Local people fear that carefree picnics, barbecues and al fresco dinner parties may never be the same again.
The toads' skin is so toxic that it can kill cats or dogs unfortunate enough to mistake them for a tasty snack.
They can prove fatal to curious toddlers who pick them up or play with them. Even their eggs and tadpoles are poisonous.
Having survived bombing by the Japanese in the Second World War and a devastating cyclone in 1974, Darwin's inhabitants fear the assault by Bufo marinus could be their greatest challenge.
"It's going to be a big shock," said Ian Morris, from Frogwatch, a local conservation group.
"We are going to have to keep our pets inside and constantly worry about the kids."
The invaders are barely 70 kilometres from Darwin's outskirts and are expected in the city's lush tropical parks and gardens by December.
They'll thrive on Darwin's high humidity, balmy temperatures, prolific insect life and dense jungle vegetation, as they have in Queensland.
The creatures have already occupied Kakadu National Park, a patchwork of swamps, billabongs and escarpments made famous by the 1986 film Crocodile Dundee.
Squashed bodies line the Arnhem Highway, the main road into the park, which lies 250 kilometres east of Darwin.
Some species are learning how to deal with the toads. "Crows have learned to flip them over and eat their bellies out, avoiding the poison glands,'' Kennett said.
"Crocodiles rip the toads' skin off with their teeth and thrash them around in the water to wash out the toxins.''