Backbencher

Imagine you are an unusually gifted and creative film student who has been given a grant from the government to create a documentary on a species of local wildlife. Now image that you spent half of the grant on the film, the other half on some really good drugs, and pursued both interests simultaneously. The result might be something like Cane Toads.

During the 1930's Australian sugar cane farms were plagued by a type of larva that fed on the roots of cane plants. Once matured, the larva became a beetle that fed on the above ground portion of the plant. Their answer was to import a colony of 102 Cane Toads from Hawaii, where they had apparently solved a similar issue. Since their introduction in 1930, the Cane Toads have spread like weeds along the northeastern coast of Australia and now inhabit over 40% of Queensland. Their expansion has left a unique impression on the local environment and citizenry. What they didn't do was solve the beetle problem.

Many interesting fact about the toads appeared throughout the movie. For instance, their mating instinct is so strong, male toads have been seen attempting to mate with road-kill females...possibly for eight hours or more. While dead toads are no good for reproduction, they have other uses. You can use them to get high or for making books. When Prince Charles and Lady Dianna were married, they were given a small book bound in toad skin. A letter from Charles stated their thanks for a gift that "will bring so much pleasure to us throughout our married life." Live toads are known to make modest pets who like belly rubs.

On the surface the film appears to be a lighthearted look at a local phenomenon. On a deeper level the film serves to inspire at least a little local camaraderie among those who live side-by-side with the toad. The film has another more obvious lesson to be learned. The introduction of the Cane Toad was clearly a mistake. What we should take away from this as historians is realize that even the most reckless and irresponsible decisions are sometimes the result of a person's best intentions.