I was lucky enough in my backpacking days eons ago to get my PADI scuba diving certificate on the island of Guam in Micronesia.

A beautiful place and an amazing environment to learn to scuba dive.  There are shipwrecks in the ocean from WWII and I still have a coke bottle in the original shape that I picked up from the bottom of the ocean - a remnant  from the war years. 

My instructor was a serving US Navy guy who, once I qualified, took me for a couple of night dives - the clarity was spectacular and diving on sunken battle ships at night was something I didn't appreciate the uniqueness of until much, much later.

Something else I experienced in Guam which I had never come across before were these horrible, disgusting, profilic frog things called cane toads.

They were everywhere and would come out in the evening. To walk along any path you had to watch where you were going otherwise you'd be bound to trip over one, or tread on one.  The hotel where I was staying had a large expanse of grass at the front and in the light of the moon you could see blobs of darkness with (and I'm not 100% sure of my memory here) the reflection of little beady eyes.  And they were really, really big!  Almost the size of little puppies.

These cane toads spoilt what was an otherwise beautiful place.  They were totally and utterly gross.

And now to hear that one has been found in suburbia.  I thought the latest was stopping them from getting to Kununurra! 

What is the solution, what shall we do? 

I'm hoping (like everyone I'm sure) that this female toad hitched a lift and is by herself and has no baby toads lurking around.  (Not knowing anything about the reproductive systems of toads but assuming toadpoles that turn into toads like normal frogs - will Google and find out more.).

So, let's wait and see and for all of us in suburban Perth, be vigilant.

Jane x

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