Cane Toads – An Unnatural History

Optimistically imported into Australia to curb the destructive sugar cane beetle in 1935 - 'Now we've got these cane grubs by the balls!' - the cane toad proved useless. Worse, it bred at an astonishing rate, choked the billabongs, ate everything including ping-pong balls, emitted toxins to the touch, and possessed a sex drive so strong that it would mate with mud. 'They're a bit of a rough bunch', comments one of the numerous and hilarious interviewees. But in some areas of Queensland, the cane toad is regarded with reverence and even affection - 'They're mates' - and statues have been erected to the warty oversized amphibian. Little girls put little frocks on them and put them in little beds; junkies smoke them and hallucinate; a citizen impersonated one on the highway and was fined. The most curious nature film since The Hellstrom Chronicle.