Beware the Beast That Could End Our World

Bright Side

The cane toad, also known as the cane frog, is considered the most destructive frog in the world. Originally from Central and South America, it was introduced to Australia in the 1930s to control sugarcane pests. Instead, it became an invasive species, spreading rapidly and causing major ecological damage. These toads are highly toxic, posing a deadly threat to native animals that try to eat them. Their presence has led to significant declines in local wildlife populations, making them a huge environmental problem.  #brightside   Animation is created by Bright Side.  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/   Listen to Bright Side on:  Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD34jRLrMrJux4VxV Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/idhttps-podcasts-apple-com-podcast-bright-side/id1554898078 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our Social Media: Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/brightside/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/brightside.official/ Tik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.official?lang=en Snapchat - https://www.snapchat.com/p/c6a1e38a-bff1-4a40-9731-2c8234ccb19f/1866144599336960  Stock materials (photos, footages and other):  https://www.depositphotos.com  https://www.shutterstock.com  https://www.eastnews.ru  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me

Transcript

00:00 What do you think is one of the most dangerous animals in the world?

00:03 It's not a venomous snake or a formidable tiger, not a ferocious grizzly bear or a giant crocodile.

00:09 An extremely dangerous creature that can destroy entire species of animals and can cause

00:15 ecological imbalance around the world is the cane toad.

00:19 It doesn't look scary and aggressive. It won't attack you or any predatory animal.

00:24 It spends its time among grass and swamps, hunts insects and croaks. It has many enemies among predators.

00:32 Herons, lizards and others. And look, the crocodile is swimming up to the toad and grabs it with its powerful jaws.

00:39 Lunch is ready, but watch what happens next. The crocodile feels very bad.

00:44 It loses its strength and lies on the grass, not breathing. Call it terminal indigestion.

00:52 The fact is that the cane toad is a highly poisonous amphibian.

00:56 It has parotid glands between the shoulders from which it secretes a dangerous toxin.

01:01 As soon as it gets into the stomach of any animal, it causes irreversible reactions in the whole organism.

01:07 Animals that have eaten cane toads rarely survive.

01:11 And now imagine there are a million toads like that and each of them is an attractive lunch for predators.

01:18 This creature is native to South and Central America, but became most famous after it caused an environmental disaster in Australia.

01:26 It all started in 1935 when people brought cane toads to fight the cane beetle.

01:32 These insects were spoiling sugarcane crops in the northern part of the country.

01:36 Farmers thought the imported toads would quickly get rid of the pests, but far from getting help,

01:42 Australia received even more damage.

01:46 The first problem was that toads didn't hunt bugs. Well, that would have been nice to know beforehand.

01:52 Insects lived on the tall stalks of reeds and toads couldn't jump as high.

01:57 So toads would feed on other insects and multiply rapidly.

02:01 Initially, about a hundred reed toads were brought.

02:04 Farmers managed to breed more than 2,000 of these animals and release them into the fields.

02:09 The amphibian population grew to 200 million in less than 85 years.

02:15 They flooded Australia and caused a decrease in the population of those predatory animals that fed on them.

02:21 Unfortunately, the local fauna didn't manage to develop immunity to the toad poison.

02:27 The invasive toads would wander all over the northern part of the continent,

02:31 spreading at a speed of 30 miles per hour and causing damage to all the biological environments they came across.

02:38 Locals said they had witnessed birds falling from the sky after eating toads.

02:45 These jumping animals are dangerous for those who eat and touch them.

02:48 Any animal that licks or bites a toad will immediately receive a measure of poison hazardous to their health.

02:54 The endurance of toads escalates the problem. They can withstand nearly any weather conditions and can breed anywhere.

03:01 You can hear them croaking in tropical forests, coastal thickets, and even among dunes.

03:07 They deal with cold temperatures and heat and eat everything in their path. They're not picky when it comes to food.

03:14 Amphibians feed on live insects, carrion, and waste.

03:17 But the most crucial problem is the speed of their reproduction.

03:21 Female cane toads lay from 8 to 30 thousand eggs twice a year.

03:26 Within three days, tiny tadpoles hatch from the eggs. They swim in the water for 20 weeks, then become toads.

03:34 Their life expectancy is from 5 to 10 years in the wild.

03:37 Bad weather conditions, predators, drought, and anything else can't stop them.

03:44 People don't know what to do with them either. The only chance to save other animals is to teach them not to eat toads.

03:50 Scientists cook sausages from cane toads with a small concentration of poison inside.

03:57 They gave this food to monitor lizards, freshwater crocodiles, and other predators so they could recognize the taste of the toad.

04:05 Animals were slightly poisoned by the toad sausages and remember that anything with this smell was dangerous.

04:12 Scientists hope they won't approach the toads after smelling them.

04:15 Amphibians have destroyed most of the biodiversity in the northern part of the country, and now they're rapidly moving to Western Australia.

04:24 Scientists hope their plan saves animals, but what to do next?

04:28 Perhaps nature can offer a solution to the problem.

04:31 Some predatory animals may become immune to toad toxins, but it's unknown when this will happen.

04:38 Invasive toads are quite a severe problem for ecology, but they look harmless.

04:43 And how about invasive pythons? In the Everglades in Florida, Burmese pythons threaten the local wildlife.

04:50 Giant crawling monsters have become the dominant species, displacing their alligator enemies from the swamps.

04:58 Pythons hunt rabbits, possums, and other animals, decreasing their population by 99%.

05:05 Of course, there are not as many pythons as toads, and people can get rid of them.

05:09 But the problem is that they are exceptionally good at hiding.

05:13 Even professional wildlife experts can't find them in the swamps and jungles.

05:18 These pythons are also excellent hunters.

05:21 They hide, wait, and attack, which makes them some of the most dangerous invasive creatures in the world.

05:26 But fortunately, they don't attack people.

05:29 Feral hogs are some of the most aggressive invasive species on Earth.

05:34 They have razor-sharp teeth and mighty tusks.

05:37 They're not afraid of anything and will attack even a human.

05:41 These big, fast animals eat acorns, chestnuts, turtle eggs, turkey and quail eggs,

05:46 trample plants, and strike terror into all creatures in the area.

05:50 They can cause $1.5 billion in damage annually in 47 states.

05:57 Imported in the US several centuries ago, feral hogs have recently experienced a fertility splash.

06:05 Local biologists and farmers are trying to solve the problem,

06:08 but at the moment, it's pretty challenging to control the feral hog population.

06:12 This tiny beetle seems harmless, but can cause orange juice to disappear in the US.

06:19 This is the Aegean citrus psyllid that loves to eat orange fruit.

06:24 This insect contains bacteria that infects citrus trees and slowly destroys them.

06:29 After getting infected, tree roots deform, oranges fall to the ground earlier than they're supposed to,

06:35 and the tree slowly loses vital energy.

06:38 The Aegean citrus psyllid spreads in Florida, where about 80% of the country's orange juice is produced.

06:44 Also, this parasite is found in Georgia, Texas, Louisiana, and California, the states where many lemons grow.

06:52 So we've seen invasive amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and insects. What about invasive birds?

06:59 The European starling is a cute little bird, but it ceases to be so as soon as it joins a giant flock.

07:06 Starlings gather in groups of hundreds and thousands, resembling massive black clouds.

07:11 They fly to cities, villages, and harvest fields in search of food.

07:16 Birds eat cattle feed and thus create a lot of problems for farmers.

07:21 This invasive insect doesn't threaten other animal species, doesn't spoil crops and trees,

07:28 doesn't bite, and doesn't transport any infection.

07:31 But its main problem is the unpleasant smell that it emits.

07:35 There are so many brown, mammarated stink bugs in the US that, most likely, some of them live in your house.

07:42 If you've ever seen it, you probably remember that stinky smell.

07:46 Thanks to this fragrance, stink bugs have almost no enemies, at least in America.

07:51 But in China, their populations are controlled by wasps that use the back of bugs to lay eggs.

07:58 There are no such wasps in the States, so stink bugs breed freely here.

08:03 Now, let's talk about one of the most invasive plants in the world.

08:07 This is giant hogweed. It secretes a poison that is activated when exposed to sunlight.

08:13 The toxin can burn skin and destroy trees and plants growing around giant hogweed.

08:18 From the outside, it may seem like a beautiful plant. It has a tall 15-foot stem with a beautiful white flower.

08:28 But this plant gets rid of other vegetation around it.

08:30 Giant hogweed releases its seeds, and a light breeze spreads them for miles.

08:35 When new plants grow, they destroy any other plants living nearby.

08:40 The problem is that giant hogweed has no enemies. Insect pests can't eat it because of its poison.

08:46 Animals also avoid it. Well, maybe nature will create some bugs that will eat its leaves and thus restore the balance.

08:57 That's it for today. So, hey, if you pacified your curiosity,

09:00 then give the video a like and share it with your friends. Or if you want more,

09:04 just click on these videos and stay on the Bright Side!

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