The Cane Toad is an invasive species that is natively found in Hawaii. After being introduced to fight the agricultural pests the Cane Toad became a prevalent pest that is wreaking havoc on the North-east Australian environment. Being highly poisonous in nature and having almost no predator in the Australian ecosystem has allowed the toad to spread unchecked for nearly eighty years. The Queensland Quolls are one unfortunate victim of the invaders. Their population decreased dramatically and continues to decrease. Researchers from the University of Melbourne believe that the quolls can be trained to recognize the poisonous toads and avoid eating them and dieing. Ella Kelly, a researcher from U of Melbourne, said "Queensland quolls are toad-smart, which means they avoid cane toads as a prey item. 
The researchers are taking the quoll to an island heavily populated by the cane toad. In the future, the quoll will hopefully pass on the information through the generations. This does not solve the underlying problem, but at least for now the quoll will not be yet another unfortunate conclusion to humanity's impact on the global ecosystems.
Work Cited:
Morris, Lulu. "Quolls Trained to Stay Away from Poisonous Cane Toads." National Geographic. National Geographic, 22 May 2017. Web. 19 June 2017. <http://www.nationalgeographic.com.au/australia/quolls-trained-to-stay-away-from-poisonous-cane-toads.aspx>.
Schubert, Steven. "'Cane-toad-smart' Quolls to Be Bred in the NT." ABC News Australia. ABC News, 20 May 2017. Web. 19 June 2017. <http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-21/cane-toad-smart-quolls-to-be-trained-in-the-northern-territory/8544956>.
very interesting! i liked how you incorporated the story of how the toads invaded the mice
ReplyDeleteThis is such a different but interesting article, how the mice are now being trained not to eat the poisonous toads. And I know its reliable because the information is from National Geographic and ABC News. I hope the Quolls will survive because they're cute little animals!
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