Toadzilla

You may have missed this in today's Gazette - the capture (in a pond "raid"!! of a nearly 2-pound, 15-inch-long cane toad in Australia. Holy cannoli! That's a load of a toad.

We love weird animal stories, but perhaps the best part of the story is revelation of the group Frogwatch, dedicated to wiping out the hoppers. Said its coordinator, Graeme Sawyer, "The biggest toads are usually females but this one was a rampant male ... I would hate to meet his big sister."

See video of the monster here. (Photo courtesy Reuters.)

Aussies imported cane toads from South America in the '30s to try to control beetles on sugar cane plantations. Oops!

I have to say, those toads are huge - as many things are in the tropical areas of Australia. My first night in north Queensland I saw cockroaches as big as my palm, those enormous toads and fruit bats with 3-foot-plus wingspans. I was terrified when I heard my first domesticated cat meow - expecting a puma-size tabby to walk around the corner.