"Monster" Cane Toad Discovered In Australian Coastal Park

Australian park authorities killed a warty, brown cane toad that was as long as a human arm and weighed 2.7 kilos after being found in the wild at a coastal park. Wildlife workers were travelling through Queensland's Conway National Park when they came upon the toad after being forced to halt by a snake crawling over the track, according to the state government.

Ranger Kylee Gray said that she caught the cane toad with her hand and was astounded by its size and weight. A cane toad that large can consume whatever it can fit in its mouth, including insects, reptiles, and small mammals.

The animal was removed and put to death. To combat the cane beetle, cane toads were introduced into Queensland in 1935, which had disastrous effects on the local wildlife.

According to a statement from the Queensland Department of Environment and Science, the toad may set a record of 2.7 kilos, which is almost the weight of a newborn human child. The department called it a "monster" and suggested it might wind up in the Queensland Museum. The rangers think it was a female because of its size.

Gray stated that even though the age is unknown, "this one has been around for a long time," adding that amphibians can survive up to 15 years in the wild. Additionally, female cane toads can lay up to 30,000 eggs in a season, and the creatures are so venomous that several of their native predators have been driven extinct.