The other really important part of the Watergum Cane Toads program is toad busting, the act of going out a night and collecting adult toads, before they can breed and make even more toads! In order to keep producing lures, we need a constant supply of frozen toads to make them with. Toad busting is also a very effective method of cane toad control and if you really want to see a reduction in numbers on your properties and in your local area, you need go out toad busting as well as tadpole trapping.

Toad Busting Tips

Go out at dusk or just after dark. Arm yourself with a torch, rubber gloves, a litter-picker and a big bucket and off you go! Collect every toad you see, big and small. You are likely to find toads all year round and they will be particularly active throughout the breeding season of September to March, especially after rain. If you wander around your property you will find their favourite spots to congregate. Toads love lawns, especially if you have sprinklers. You will often find them around the house, garage or streetlights as lights attract insects which in-turn attract cane toads.  Most of all, toads love water. Listen out for the males singing to find them congregating around water holes.

Turn toad busting into a routine for your family. Children especially tend to really enjoy it. Introduce prizes for the biggest toad, most toads collect, yellowest toad, etc. Get out as often as you can and enjoy the competition. Toad busting is also a great activity for community groups, landcare groups and neighbourhood engagement. If everyone of your street participates on their own properties, your collective impact on the local population will be much greater. Remember, the removal of just one female from the environment is the prevention of up to 70,000 offspring hatching into the next generation! Toad busting really does go a long way.

While you are out you are also likely to see lots of  other wildlife too! Combine the activity with night-spotting and see what else is on your property and in your local area. These were all spotted by Watergum committee members while out toad busting! An adjustable beam torch will be super helpful to make sure you get the most out of your night-time excursions. Use the floodlight for toad busting and the spotlight to scan the trees.

What do you do with them once you’ve caught them?

In order to be donated to the Watergum Cane Toads program for lure production, cane toads must be euthanised using the fridge/freezer method. Watergum insists on this for humane reasons and is also necessary to make sure that the lures remain water-safe. Pop your toads in the fridge (in a dedicated container) for 8 – 24  hours. The cold temperatures cause them to slip into a coma, killing their brain activity. The bigger they are and the more of them there are together, the longer this will take. You can tell they have slipped into a coma as their legs will splay out. Next, transfer them to the freezer.

PLEASE DON’T FREEZE YOUR TOADS INSTANTLY!

Firstly, this is a very inhumane and painful process for the toads. Ice crystals form in their veins and it is very painful. Secondly, if flash frozen, the toads can actually come back to life when they are defrosted, an amphibian magic trick! Believe us (and our poor intern who was dissecting the glands for us!) we have seen it happen a couple of times, and it is very distressing for us, and for the toads.

If you have some frozen cane toads for us, please email us at canetoads@watergum.org to arrange deliveryat one of our drop-off points.

Once we receive your frozen toads, we remove the toxic glands and send them to the University of Queensland for lure production. The detoxified bodies are donated to the Nerang River Keepers for composting.

If you are unable to donate your frozen toads to us then you must dispose of them safely so as not to endanger pets and wildlife. Either seal them in a plastic bag and bin them or bury them deep your compost.  If you have a hot compost system, it will break down the toad toxin in a week or so and provide you with great compost for your garden in a much shorter time period than a regular compost system.

Learn how to make a hot compost system here!

Tools for Toad Busting

Litter Pickers

Bunnings litter picker

Supercheap Auto litter picker

Ebay litter picker

Bins and Tubs

Seton black bin

Bunnings white bucket with lid

Bunnings small compost caddy with hinged lid

We have some members who have persisted with toad-busting on their properties for several years and have succeeded in almost eradicating toads from their properties. New toads will continue to pass through your land each year but toad busting can eradicate your resident population, significantly reducing your workload within one year. The sooner you start, the better!

What NOT to do

There are a number of methods that have been traditionally used for cane toad control which we do not condone and can not accept for lure production.

Many people unfortunately use ‘toad stop’ or Dettol to kill toads, this is very painful and inhumane, causing a slow, painful and terrifying death for the toads. These products also put harmful chemicals into the environment. We cannot use toads that have been killed in this way for lure production due to our humane policy and as the chemicals are a pollutant and can not be placed in waterways.

If you want more information of Watergum’s humane euthanasia policy with regard to cane toads, click here.

Other inhumane methods of killing such as hitting, whacking, smashing, crushing and decapitating leave poisonous cane toad residue on the ground for pets and wildlife to find. Dogs are attracted to can toad toxin. If they find it on the ground and lick it, their lives may be in danger.

Many hit them with golf clubs. This often doesn’t kill them, they are very hardy. It just inconveniences them by moving them. They will be back.

Cane toads are living things and don’t deserve to be tortured or abused. It’s not their fault they are on the wrong continent. Humans put them here! Taking pleasure from the harm and suffering of a frightened and helpless animals is disturbing. Don’t pass this behaviour onto the next generation. Be honourable and respectful and contribute to science and the environment by using the fridge/freezer method of euthanasia and donating your toads to the Watergum Cane Toad program when possible.

Discussion Point: Do you and your family actively go toad busting on your properties or in your local area? Share your observations and tips here to help others get started. Remember to add your catches to our online database using our simple data entry.