JULY 18,
2019
A toxic
cane toad prevalent in Australia's tropical north has been captured near
Sydney, sparking fears the invasive species could be adapting to cooler weather
and spreading southwards, further threatening the country's unique wildlife.
A local
family caught the adult male toad about 50 kilometres (30 miles) north of
Sydney on Tuesday, the first time one of its kind had been found wild in the
area, the Australian Reptile Park said.
The toad
has a highly poisonous venom that kills predators that try to eat them, causing
catastrophic declines in native wildlife populations in northeast Australia.
Conservationists
are concerned that the tough and adaptable pest, introduced from Central
America in 1935 to control beetles in sugarcane fields, may be adjusting to the
climate in southeast Australia amid an unseasonably mild winter.
"If
it's warmer for extended periods of time, it's obviously going to complement
the toads," Park manager Tim Faulkner told AFP.
Faulkner
said he was aware of just two others being found in the area over the past 15
years—both of which had "hitched a ride" with travellers or delivery
trucks.
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