Monster cane toad found in Australia

julie submitted, created time 1 year 7 months (www.reuters.com)

"A huge cane toad the size of a small dog has been captured in the Australian tropical city of Darwin, startling environmentalists who are fighting to stop the poisonous amphibians spread across the country. "

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Salamander trumps toad as Mr Universe

Vampire submitted, created time 1 year 9 months (www.newscientist.com)

Hop away toads, you've lost your title as the world's strongest animal. That honour now passes to the giant palm salamander Bolitoglossa dofleini, whose tongue explodes outward with more instantaneous power than any other known vertebrate muscle. At 18,000 watts of power per kilogram of muscle, the salamander, from the forest floors of Central America, is nearly twice as strong as the previous champ, the Colorado river toad Bufo alvarius

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Snakes eat poisonous toads and steal their venom

digiview submitted, created time 1 year 9 months (space.newscientist.com)

Rhabdophis tigrinus snakes are unable to synthesise their own toxins, so they can only have derived bufadienolide compounds from their diet (poisonous toads).

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Snake Eats Toxic Toad and Steals its Poison

penguin submitted, created time 1 year 9 months (www.livescience.com)

The Asian snake Rhabdophis tigrinus is one tough customer. Not only can it swallow toxic toads and live to tell. It also uses the toad’s poison for its own defense, new research shows. And rather than deploying the toxin, the snake uses it as the biological equivalent of waving a busted gun.

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