Asian black-spined toad

Why is it important to report Asian black-spined toad sightings?

The Asian black-spined toad (Duttaphrynus melanosticus) is not native to Australia and if given the opportunity could establish in the cooler parts of Australia.

The toads:

• can compete with native frogs for food and suitable habitat
• can pose a risk by carrying exotic parasites and diseases
• skin can secrete a milky toxin, much like a cane toad. This toxin can potentially cause severe impacts on native species which might prey on the toad
• secretion has a pungent odour and can cause itching in the nose and eyes when handled by humans and if the skin or eggs are eaten can cause serious illness or even death.

Description

The Asian black-spined toad is native to China, southern Asia, India, Pakistan, Nepal and Indonesia.

The toad:

• is a stocky, medium to large with a small head and short hind limbs
• heads have elevated bony ridges, with long dark crests that border the eyelids and run down on either side of the eye
• have black-tipped, hooked toes
• colour can range from greyish to reddish brown, with the most common colour being pale yellow-brown with dark or reddish-brown streaks and spots
• backs are covered with round pimple-like warts, often surrounded by a darker colour and capped with dark, distinctive spines
• adults look very similar to the cane toad although they do not grow as large

The Asian black-spined toads call is different to most other native frog calls. It sounds like a telephone dial tone (creo-o-o; cro-ro-ro-ro) and is sustained for about 30 seconds and repeated in a chorus monotonously. It will be heard at night and sometimes on an overcast day.

Source: Agriculture Victoria. Photograph by Jane Melville, Museum Victoria.

Behaviour

Asian black-spined toads:

• prefer disturbed lowland habitat such as disturbed forest, riparian and human-dominated agricultural and urban areas
• are nocturnal so shelter during the day under rocks, leaf-litter, logs and man-made structures such as drains, rubbish piles and sometimes houses
• often gather beneath streetlamps and other lights to catch insects at night
• are ground-dwelling, poor climbers and are unable to jump very high due to the absence of large toe pads.