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CANE TOADS -CANE TOADS -a special edition

BRINKon the

QUOLLS

URBANencounters

GOANNAS

PLANT

WEEDS

profile

Australia does not have any native toads. One

hundred and one Cane Toads ( ) were

brought to Queensland from Hawaii in 1935 to control cane

beetles, a pest of sugar cane. The toads did not control the beetle. Instead they

spread overland.

Bufo marinus

CREATUREfeatureCane Toads

People in Queensland andnorthern NSW have beenliving with these creatures foryears. In 2001 they reachedthe wetlands of KakaduNational Park. Now those ofus in the Top End have tolive with them too.

Female Cane Toads can lay4 000 to 36 000 eggs.Adults, eggs, tadpoles andtoadlets are all poisonous.They lay the eggs in longspaghetti-like strands of clearjelly which can be over 10metres long.

Toad tadpoles are black andmuch smaller than mosttadpoles of native frogs.They have pointed arrow-likesnouts, thin tails and areblack underneath. If you areunsure, check with the Parksand Wildlife Service.

There are threeways that a canetoad can harmour nativewildlife:them; with themfor food and shelter sites,

the animals thateat them.

Why are there so

many?

Why are they

so bad?

eatingcompeting

poisoning

Adult Cane Toads will eat almost anything that fits in their mouth.They love ants, termites, millipedes and beetles and can eat upto 200 food items in one night. In urban areas they love eatingpet food, but they won't poison it. The animals most threatenedby cane toads are frog eaters such as snakes, goannas andnorthern quolls.

C E N D A O T E N A C P

T W A R T Y S K I N R O

T A D P O L E A L A N I

S U N I R A M O F U B S

D Q U E E N S L A N D O

T O X I C E G G S T R N

N O I T I T E P M O C G

P R E D A T I O N O P L

B O N Y R I D G E I C A

A L S O U T H A M E R N

R A E S U O I V B O I D

W E B B E D F E E T C A

BONY RIDGE

BUFO MARINUS

CANE TOAD

Where do they come from?

Find these toad terms in the grid. The lettersleftover will spell out where the natural home ofthe Cane Toad is.

PREDATION

QUEENSLAND

TADPOLE

COMPETITION

OBVIOUS EAR

POISON GLAND

TOXIC EGGS

WARTY SKIN

WEBBED FEET

2

It is easy to mistake a CaneToad for some of our nativefrogs. Most of the frogs thatlook similar to Cane Toadsare smaller. Cane Toadcolouring ranges from grey toolive brown with a belly thatis pale with dark, irregularspots. Cane Toads can alsobe identified by their obviousears, raised (parotid) poisonglands on the shoulders, ahigh bony ridge over theeyes, circular pupils andpartially webbed feet. If it issmaller than 55mm and hasno bony ridge, it could be anOrnate Burrowing Frog, aMarble Frog or a NorthernSpade Foot Frog.

Mistaken Identity

bony ridge

round pupil obvious earraised glands

fully webbed feet

Are my pets safe ?

Cats are usually too cautiousto attack Cane Toads, butdogs may try to eat them. Ifthe dog is taken to a vetstraight away, it will probablysurvive.

What should I do if I see

one?

Make sure you have a CaneToad first! You can reduceCane Toad numbers on yourproperty by killing any that yousee. The most humane way isto use a plastic shopping bagto pick the toad up, double bagit, tie it tightly and freeze itovernight. You can bury it orput it in your wheelie bin.

How can I find out

more?

These websites areuseful:www.frogwatch.org.au

www.nt.gov.au/ipe/pwcnt/

www.csiro.au

What else can I do?

Avoid leaving containers ofwater around for toads tobreed in. Keep your pet'sfood out of reach. If youhave a pond, remove anycane toad eggs you see. Becareful you don't accidentallyhelp Cane Toads travel -they are great hitchhikersand will find their way intopot plants, trailers andswags.

Can I keep them out of

my backyard?

Installing a 500mm highbarrier of fine mesh or smoothsheeting around yourperimeter (including the gate)could help to keep them out.Cane Toads can burrow a bit,so you will need to sink thebarrier about 150mm into theground. You will also need towatch out for toads that enterthrough your gate.

What effect will they

have?

Many native animals will dieand some species maybecome much rarer, possiblyeven extinct in their regions.We will see Cane Toads(dead and alive) on roads, inparks and gardens and inbodies of water like drainsand swimming pools. Oncetheir presence has peakedafter a couple of years, wewon't see quite so many ofthem.

Telltale features of a

Cane Toad

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

bony ridge

K N O W Y O U R N AT I V E S Marble Frog- up to 55mm, ear

not obvious,horizontal pupils and

feet partiallywebbed.

Giant Frog -up to 100mm,obvious ear,

horizontal pupilsand feet not

webbed.

3

URBANencountersGoannas - going, going, gone?

So what makes the

goanna so interesting?

Then, out of the blue,

hopped a poisonous

toad…

The long road to

recovery

Goannas are not dinosaursbut they are ancientcreatures.

Goannas survive in all thehabitats within Australia.They are ferocious hunters,and are an important part ofAustralia's bush ecology.

For thousands of years,Aboriginal people have eatenthem as traditional food.

For all of these reasonsGoannas are special and justlike all of our wildlife, theyneed looking after.

As cane toads have spreadfrom Queensland across thetop end of Australia, Goannanumbers have crashed.These great Aussie hunterscannot cope with poisonousprey. And as the Goannasgo, a hole forms in the webof life.

So what happens now? Arethe Goannas gone for good?Scientists think not. Theybelieve that most populationswill recover, but they may

The typical postureof a running goanna

Goanna on the run

Welcome to the firstedition of the 2004 JuniorRanger Review.

This edition has lots ofinformation about thecane toad and its impacton Territory wildlife.Toads are already inKakadu National Park,Katherine and PineCreek and will probablyreach Darwin this year. Iencourage all JuniorRangers and theirfamilies to learn aboutcane toads and makesure you know how to tellthe difference betweenthe introduced toad andour important nativefrogs.

You may also notice theReview has got a freshnew look, including anew back page Discovera Territory Park. Thispage will help tointroduce you to themany different Parks andReserves we have in theNT and I think will begreat when planning yournext family holiday.

G'day from Ranger Bill.

Ranger Bill

Australia is the land of the lizard. We have more

lizards than any other place on Earth. For

thousands of years our goannas have sat at the top

of the lizard pile.

take several decades.

Widespread species will farebetter than ones that live inisolated pockets. Isolatedpopulations occur where aspecies cannot or will notventure out of a particularhabitat. Once the cane toadsoverrun their areas, theseGoannas cannot rely onreinforcements to replacetheir dead.

Sadly, cane toads are here tostay. The Goannas mustlearn not to eat them. Thiswill not be easy because theyare attacking machines. Theyare opportunistic feeders thatwill try to overpower anythingthat moves close to them.

Some Goannas may be luckybecause the cane toads willnot reach their habitat. Thesesurviving populations willthen help other populationsto recover.

4

Goannas are great survivors because…

They're notfussy

eaters…and

don't mind dead

stuff that's a bit on the

nose!

The females are goodat digging holes andhiding the eggs.

They can go into a

formof hibernation, called

aestivation, when times get

tough.

They arenot easy tosee. They oftenhave interestingmarkings that provide

great camouflage.

They're

very energy

efficient. Being partly

solar-powered and slung low to the

ground is a big advantage. They can

warm up fast and cool down just

as quickly.

The largest goanna in Australia alsohas the most striking camouflage markings.

Perentie Goanna

Varanus giganteus

Make a stand and then

hit the road

Goannas aren't dangerous(unless you're small enoughto be potential tucker.)

If it is cornered, it has goodweapons in the shape of amean set of teeth, sharpclaws and a tail it can swinglike a whip, with surprisingaccuracy. In defence, agoanna may stand on itshind legs, with its mouthpartially open, hissing loudly.More often than nothowever, even the largestcreatures will run for coveror scamper up a tree.

Use this grid to decode one of the best

ways the goanna survives.

Check your answer on page:

A B C D E

F G H I J

K L M N O

P Q R S T

U V W X Y

A

B

C

D

E

1 2 3 4 5

It uses its forked

all about their surroundings by using special

on the roof of their mouth.

to

chemical sensing

C2 C5 C4 B2 D5 C5 C4 B2 E1 A5

D3 A5 A1 A4

C5 D3 B2 A1 C4 D4

Theyhave

water

tight skinsso

they

cango

without

water for along

time.

5

Northern Territory Quolls

What's threatening

their survival?

The Western Quoll( ) hassuffered the same fate asmany medium sizedmammals from CentralAustralia. A complexcombination of changed fireregimes, land clearing,disease, predation andcompetition for food fromcats, foxes and dogs, as wellas droughts have all taken atoll. People have also killedthem for breaking intochicken coups. Many havealso been accidentallypoisoned by baits meant forfoxes and wild dogs.

Dasyurus geoffroii

The scheme to move Northern Quolls to therelative safety of our offshore Islands hasbeen named Project Island Ark. Not as in anarc, or ring of islands, but as in the biblicalstory of Noah's Ark.

The story goes that Noah took two of every animal onto his ark (boat) sothat they could repopulate the earth after the Great Biblical flood.Now we are saving Quolls from a 'flood' of cane toads!

Project Island Ark

Did you know?The Eastern Quoll( ) is

on the mainlandand the Spotted-tailed Quoll(or Tiger Quoll) ( )is .Thankfully they are both fairlycommon in Tasmania.

Male Quolls only evermate for .Then they usually

All Quolls are fairlybut the

Northern Quoll is thebest. You might even find one

!

Although many Quollshave accidentally been

throughoutAustralia, the remainingWestern Quolls areto the commonly used fox anddog poison.

Dasyurus viverrinus

D. maculatus

extinct

barely hanging on

one seasondie!

goodclimbers,

living in your roof

poisoned

immune

Two hundred years

ago, two of Australia's

four species of Quoll

could be found

throughout the

Northern Territory.

Now the Western Quoll isgone and the Northern Quollis ON THE BRINK ofextinction.

Quolls are ferociousnocturnal hunters. They area similar size to domesticcats and easily recognisableby the white spots on theirback. They will eat anythingfrom insects up to mammalsthe size of small kangaroos.

They live fast and die young.In the wild, females live for amaximum of three yearswhile males are lucky to livefor two. Females will haveabout six babies that spendsix to eight weeks in hersmall pouch. After that shehas to leave them in somesort of den while sheventures out to hunt.

Western Quoll

BRINKon the6

Code: A= 1, B =2 etc.

What is Chilpa the Quoll thinking about as she sits on the branch of the tree?

The Northern Quoll( ) facesmany of the same problems.On top of that they now haveto deal with cane toads.Cane toads seem to be anirresistible meal to a Quoll,but unfortunately even justmouthing a cane toad isenough to bring death withintwenty minutes. Somestudies have shown thatmany other animals that eat

Dasyurus hallucatus

Have a go at this puzzle.

nowthenLEGEND:

Western Quolls used tooccur over most of

Australia. Now they areonly found in the

south west of WA.Central AustralianAboriginal peopleknow them as

orand they are still

associated with manyimportant ceremonies.

chilpa kuningga,

Northern Quolls , oras the

people of Arnhem Landknow them, were much

more common beforeEuropeansettlement. Theyprefer to live inbroken, rocky

country or openwoodlands closer to

the coast.

barkuma, Yolgnu

cane toads eventually adapt and learn not to eat them,but so far it looks like Quolls have not.

Parks and Wildlife, in conjunction with traditional land owners and other agencies are catchingQuolls on the mainland and taking them to Islands off our north coast. This is not just to givethem a holiday! It is hoped that by taking them to places that cane toads cannot access, weshould be able to keep them safe until we work out a way to rid Australia of the dreaded toad.

7

PROJECTpageSpencers Burrowing Frog

�

�

two friends (plus youmakes three!)

three torches

You need to start with your torch off, so it is importantto know the area where you are looking. It is best tocheck out the area in daylight so you know whatdangers might be around.

Triangulation

WHAT YOU NEED:

WHAT TO DO:

IT'S IMPORTANT:

Desert Tree FrogCommunication is veryimportant in the animalworld. Animals use a varietyof methods to sendmessages about aggression,territories, danger, or attractmates.

Male frogs use sound toattract mates and to tell otherfrogs that they haveownership of a territory.

Females frogs don’t call. Themales are trying to attract thenearby females who listenattentively for the best call.

All species of frog have adistinctive call. This way,various kinds of frog can livetogether and not accidentallysearch for members of thewrong species.

Most frogs call at night whenthey are safer frompredators.

Most frogs are nocturnalspending the day shelteringfrom the sun, wind andpredators like snakes andbirds.

Have you ever wonderedhow scientists or otherslocate them? Frog expertshave worked out a cleverway to help them find acalling frog, calledtriangulation.

Once you have heard a frog calling, all three of you needto move around the spot you think the noise is comingfrom (with your torches off). It is best to spread out alittle and form a loose triangle shape around the spot.

Now you must be very still and wait in total silence untilthe frog starts calling again. When you think you knowwhere the frog is point your torches in that direction andswitch them on. If you look carefully on the ground or inthe foliage at the spot where all three torchlights meet,you should find the frog.

LISTEN:

DON'T MOVE A MUSCLE:

*Red cellophane over torchbeams will disturb the frogs less.

It is also important towear closed-in shoes,like runners orgumboots, toprotect you fromstepping onanything in thedark.

Giant Frog

8

Cyclorana maini

Frogs, Facts & Fun!

NATUREquiz Have a go at the naturequiz and see how manyquestions you cananswer. You might haveto ofthe Junior RangerReview

read this edition

carefully.

Use

this

maz

eto

loca

teth

eca

lling

frog

Have a go at this picture crossword.Use the pictures to help you fill in themissing letter in this Froggiecrossword.

F

R

O

G

S

1234

5

67

8

Which group of animals dofrogs and toads belong to?a) Mammalsb) Reptilesc) Amphibians

Which frogs and toads havethe loudest call, the males orthe females?

From which place were canetoads introduced?a) Fijib) Hawaiic) India

The cane toad wasintroduced into Australia tocontrol a beetle problem forwhat crop growing inQueensland?

Although it is sometimescalled a native cat, quollsare more closely related to:a) Dogsb) Kangaroosc) Tigers

Northern Quolls are said tobe particularlyThis means they like to livewhere?

Do goanna lay eggs or havelive young?

What is another name thatgoannas are known as?a) Monitorsb) Dragonsc) Skinks

arboreal.

This puzzle is adaptedfrom Thomas, R,Sydenham, S, (1990),Nature Study, TheMacmillan Company ofAustralia Pty Ltd.

9

PLANTprofileCane Toads of the plant world

colour in this picture

2. Scientific name for gum trees.

3. May happen if a lot of rain falls in a short period of time.

5. Nocturnal lizard.

4. Small bird that eats seeds.

6. A plant makes its food here.

8. A black bird.

11. Trees get their energy from this.

With the best of

intentions, people

have often taken

plants to new

environments.

This has had

catastrophic

effects in some

parts of the world.

1. Covers the trunks of trees.

10. But there's a lot of this.

7. Lizard with a forked tongue.

9. Not usually seen in outback rivers.

The 11 letters in the boxes spell out thename of a feral plant that's on the move inthe outback. It grows naturally in warm, dryareas of Africa, Asia and India. A lot of itwas planted in Alice Springs in the 1960s

and 1970s to control to town'sdust problems.F

F

CREE BK ED QUIZ

CREE BK ED QUIZ

Buffel Grass

10

I am a tall African plant.

I was brought to the Top End 50 years ago for cattleto eat.

I produce lots of light, fluffy seeds that are blownaway by the wind in the dry season.

I can become a fire hazard when my seeds sprout inplaces well away from the munching mouths ofcattle.

My scientific name is .

My common name is:

Andropogon gayanus

What's my name?

H b n c b H s b t t

HINT: Change each letter to the one that comes before it in the alphabet

Feral Fruit

Paddy melons are common along roadsides andcreeks in the outback. They come from theMediterranean region.

We're not sure how the seeds got here. Sailingships in the nineteenth century carried rocks forballast. The seeds were probably mixed up withthe rocks.

Paddy melons are too bitter for us toeat but parrots and cockatoos love them.

Use the number code tocolour this bird.What's its name?

Another Runaway Plant

In 1877 the Lutheran Church built a mission on the banks of the Finke Riverin central Australia. The missionaries began growing fruit and vegetablesfor the Aboriginal people. They also planted flowers in their gardens. Oneof them was a pretty African plant with red, papery flowers. The windblew the flowers and seeds across the dry hills and plains. You'll now findthem growing all over the place.

S p t z E p d l

1 = white2 = pink3 = light grey4 = dark grey

Change each letter to the one thatcomes before it in the alphabet.

We haven't a cluewhat it's called?

11

DISCOVERChambers Pillar Historical Reserve

a territory park

Chambers Pillar is 160 km south of Alice Springs on the edge of theSimpson Desert. You will need a 4WD if you want to explore this park.

WHERE IS IT?

Explorer, John MacDouallStuart, was the first white manto visit the pillar. He washeading north on his earliestattempt to cross Australia in1860 when he first saw it. Henamed it after JamesChambers, his friend andfinancial supporter.John Ross was the next whiteman to visit the area in 1870.Ross led an exploring party todetermine the route of theOverland Telegraph Line.Chambers Pillar was alandmark on the long journeyfrom Adelaide to AliceSprings. Many earlyvisitorscarved theirnames intothe sandstone.

Chambers Pillar is a great place togo camping. There is a walking

track where you can join a board walk to climb a shortway up the Pillar. Signs tell of some of the early

pioneers whose names can still be seen in the sandstone today.

HISTORY

HOW THE PILLAR WAS FORMED

ABORIGINAL

SIGNIFICANCE

WHAT CAN YOU DO

THERE?

In Aboriginal tradition,Chambers Pillar is aKnob-tailed Gecko spiritancestor. was awarrior who traveled widely andkilled many. He broke the strictrules about marriage taking awife from the wrong skin group.Angry relatives sent him and hiswife into the desert. Soon theybecame tired, satdown to rest and turned tostone, becoming the Pillar. The

girl crouching with herface turned away inshame became

or CastleRock. Today both

features are registeredsacred sites.

Itirkawara,

Itirkawara

Itirkawara

Yayurara

Chambers Pillar is made of sand, silt and clay laid down about 340million years ago on the edge of an inland sea. Most of the iron-richlayer that once covered the entire area has been eroded away.Chambers Pillar is one of the last parts of the old land surface. Thepillar has a iron-rich red cap that is harder then the white rockunderneath.

The Junior Ranger Review is produced 4 times a yearby Parks and Wildlife Service of the NT. Design andlayout by Nanet Pagsanjan, front cover drawn byAndrew Pickering, written by

llustrations from Andrew Pickering, RobbieHenderson, Kay Kessing, Bob Whiteford, and NickPike.

Andrew Pickering, DeanMcAdam, David Rochford, Stuart Traynor, & EmilyFindlay. I

Puzzle Answers

Creature Feature: Central andtropical South America.

Urban Encounters longtongue read

organs

On the Brink:

Nature Quiz

Plant Profile

: It uses itsforked to all about theirsurroundings using special chemicalsensing on the roof of theirmouths.

mice, grasshoppers,frogs, geckos, eggs and spiders.

:

1.c 2.Males 3.b 4.sugar cane 5.b6.in trees 7.lay eggs 8.a

: 1.bark 2.eucalyptus3.flood 4.finch 5.gecko 6.leaves7.goanna 8.crow 9.water 10.sand11.sun

BUFFEL GRASS

What's my name: Gamba GrassWhat's the bird: GalahWhat's the runaway plant: Rosy Dock

Please note: You are welcome to photocopy the text &illustrations in this book without prior permission for non-profit educational purposes only. If text is reproducedseparately it must not be altered and Parks & WildlifeService of the NT must be acknowledged as the source.(If you wish to use the illustrations, permission must besought). Please contact the editor if in doubt.

Contributions are welcome andshould be sent to:The Editor,Junior Ranger ReviewPo Box 496Palmerston NT 0830

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