cane toad

American  

noun

1. a large brown toad, Bufo marinus, of tropical America, toxic to animals eating it and once exported to help control sugarcane beetles.

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cane toad British  

noun

1. Also called: giant toad.   marine toad.  a large toad, Bufo marinus , native to Central and South America but introduced into many countries to control insects and other pests of sugar-cane plantations

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Example Sentences

"I can't stand them, like they make me dry retch. So if it was a cane toad, it would have scared me."

From BBC • Jan. 15, 2026

Yellow spotted monitor lizards usually die after eating a single adult cane toad, an introduced pest with toxic skin secretions that has wreaked havoc on Australia’s native wildlife.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 15, 2024

Dr Ward-Fear says this study tracks Australia's largest cane toad mitigation strategy to date, so upscaling the methodology from individual trials to the ecosystem level was an exercise in logistics and collaborative partnerships.

From Science Daily • Apr. 9, 2024

Even with the excitement and curiosity surrounding the huge cane toad, the Queensland Department of Environment and Science announced on Twitter that Toadzilla was “euthanized due to the environmental damage they cause.”

From Washington Post • Jan. 20, 2023

A cane toad so giant wildlife officers thought it was fake has been found in a north Australian rainforest.

From BBC • Jan. 19, 2023