The cane toad (Rhinella marina), sometimes referred to as the “bufo,” giant, or marine toad, is native to extreme southern Texas through Central and tropical South America, but is established in Florida. Cane toads were initially introduced to Florida as a method of biological pest control in the 1930s. The toads were supposed to eat beetles threatening the sugar cane crop, but the introduced population did not survive. In the 1950s, a pet importer released about 100 cane toads (maybe on accident or on purpose, no one is sure) at the Miami airport, and there are other documented incidents of purposeful releases in south Florida. Cane toads have since spread through much of south and central Florida. As of 2017, they were established in much of the southern peninsula as far north as Tampa (Figure 1), and there have been several isolated sightings in northern Florida and one in southeast Georgia. A small population appears to be established in Deland in Volusia County, and there was a population that survived for several years near Panama City. Cane toads are still available through the pet trade, and isolated sightings in northern Florida may be escaped or released pets.
Cane toads have successfully invaded ecosystems in many parts of the world where people have intentionally introduced them. They were deliberately introduced to Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and numerous other Caribbean and Pacific islands in the 19th and 20th centuries. Cane toads are well known for their invasion of Australia, where they were introduced in the 1930s to control cane beetles, an agricultural pest. Because of their toxicity, cane toads severely affected Australian ecosystems. Death rates are high for many native Australian animals that attempt to eat cane toads (e.g., monitor lizards, freshwater crocodiles, and numerous species of snakes), and numbers of native predators have plummeted in areas where the toxic toads have invaded. Cane toads continue to expand westward across the Top End of Australia into the Kimberly region and southward toward Sydney.
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In their native range, cane toads are found in greater densities in human-modified habitats than in natural settings. They are common in yards and similar open areas. Their ability to exploit habitat modified by humans is a common trait among many invasive species; cane toads have proliferated in yards, golf courses, agricultural areas, and similar habitat types in Florida. Fortunately, there are few records of cane toads in Florida’s native habitats, and they do not appear to invade most natural areas in the state. Although their ecological impacts in Florida may be limited by their habitat use, they are a significant nuisance to people and are potentially lethal to pets that attack the ground-dwelling toads.
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