by Greg Mayer
A corespondent from Florida sends the following photos from Fort Myers. First up, a giant or marine or cane toad (Bufo marinus) that is living under a beehive. In this first photo, you can see that the variegated coloring is fairly cryptic against the leaf litter background.
Getting a little closer, a few things are notable. First, from the body shape (which I am tempted to describe as “jowly”, despite the fact that it’s her abdomen that’s distended), I can tell this is a fairly large individual. My correspondent, unprompted, stated it was about 15 cm long, which sounds about right for a big one. The biggest ones are in the Guianas, where they get to about 25 cm.
Second, as the preceding sentence implies, she is a female. Females are larger, and retain the brown/black/tan blotching and spotting of the juveniles. This coloration is typical of many species of toads at all ages, and in both sexes. Adult males of marinus are distinctive in becoming uni-colored in some olive drab-like shade (see a male here). And finally, note the large parotoid gland extending from above the arm towards the eye. This gland can secrete a milky toxin, which is part of the toad’s defenses.
These toads, native from the lower Rio Grande down into South America, have been introduced into Florida, and to many other places, including islands in the West Indies and the Pacific, and Australia, where they picked up the moniker “cane toad”, which is rapidly becoming the vernacular name throughout the English-speaking world. I always called them “marine toads”, from their scientific name. They are not marine (although they can be found in brackish situations), and it’s just a coincidence that U.S. Marines have landed in so many of the places that the toads were introduced (e.g. Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, New Guinea, the Philippines, etc.).
Next up a brown anole (Anolis sagrei). This species and its close relatives are widespread in the West Indies, including Cuba and the Bahamas, and have, like the toad, been introduced in to Florida and many other places. The green anole, Anolis carolinensis, native to Florida, is now perhaps less abundant than prior to the arrival of sagrei, but the native is not threatened by the invader. In Cuba, the two species (or close relatives) live side by side, with the green anole higher in the vegetation, the brown anole lower, and this ecological situation has now been replicated in Florida; the two species were “preadapted” for coexistence by their long joint history in Cuba.
Last but not least, something higher on the scala naturae, an anhinga, Anhinga anhinga, drying its feathers. These diving birds, which stab their piscine prey with their bills, do not have waterproof feathers.
If I was an anhinga (or a cormorant which I see on the coast of Maine — at least that is what I think they are) I would be absolutely ashamed to be seen in public. Imagine, what could be more absurd that a waterbird that wasn’t waterproof!! Nature is a great comedian.
Very nice, thanks for sharing these.
Nice pics form warmer climates. I imagine the largest version of the toad could swallow the anole.
The anhinga is easily confused with a cormorant, but the cormorant has a heavier, less streamlined head – and the beak is designed for grabbing rather than spearing.
Marine toads will eat anything moving that is small enough to stuff down their gullets. That’s why they are such a disaster as introduced species. Well, part of the reason – they can also take a real toll of naive predators, as they are very toxic.
A pity, in a sense – like a lot of big toads, or small ones for that matter, they have considerable charm.
I have to agree about the charm. We’re not the weirdos are we? No, it must be everyone else. 😎
It’s everyone else.
Must be.
That indiscriminate eating reminds me of the South African ullfrog. About as big as the candtoad, but i suspect even heavier.
They zre known to have eaten Rinkhals snames, small mammals a d other frogs and toads. I guess all froges are a bit lime that: if it is bigger flee it, if smaller eat it , if thesame size mate with it.
Bullfrog
I used to take care of an African bullfrog. “Omnicarnivorous” as the only word for it.
Bufo marinus — Is that one of the toads you can lick to catch a hallucinogenic buzz?
Asking for a friend in Florida.
I’m thinking you maybe licked too many mushrooms in various states. I am trying that often used Trump trick of innuendo or where slander is the last refuge.
Carefully – tell your friend that they are highly toxic and it’s easy to poison yourself with over-enthusiastic licking.
Thanks for the anhinga (anhinga). Love those guys!
Since the poison is in the parotoid glands which are behind the eye, though I read that every part of the toad is toxic, why are rats in Australia turning into surgeons to remove the gallbladders of cane toads and then eat their hearts? https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/26/australian-water-rats-cut-cane-toads-open-with-surgical-precision-to-feast-on-their-hearts. I find nothing that says cane toads’ gallbladders are especially poisonous. Can someone tell me what’s going on?
When you eat liver you remove the galbladder, tastes disgusting and bitter. Maybe it is that simple?
Not sure about the gall bladder, though as Nicolaas notes bile is indeed bitter. Though concentrated in the parotoids, the entire dorsum has poison glands; the belly skin, however, does not. There are mammalian predators that flip them over and eat them from the belly side. I can’t recall which mammals it is at the moment, but I vaguely recall they are mustelids of some sort. (This is in the Americas, not the Australian cane rat referred to above.)
GCM
Nice specimens. Thanks for the photos and interesting information.
Thanks for sharing!