Cane toad sausages on menu for WA native wildlife

Scientists in Western Australia are hoping ‘cane toad sausages’ fed to native animals will be so repulsive that endangered species will avoid the lethal amphibians.

The program is being launched in the state’s northern Kimberley region and members of the Kununurra community are being asked to collect cane toads for their meat.

When native animals such as quolls hunt and eat cane toads they are unable to handle the poisons found in their prey and die.

The amphibians can decimate native animal populations in an area within a few months.

However, a similar taste aversion program held across the Northern Territory proved successful in halting the deaths of quolls, blue tongue lizards, goannas and even freshwater crocodiles.

Scientists hope eating the sausages will cause vomiting in the native animals and put them off the taste and smell of cane toads.

Until now the sausages have been made by hand, but the WA Parks and Wildlife Department is talking with a factory about how to manufacture them.