According to Guinness World Records, the current record for the world’s largest toad is 2.65 kg (5.8 lb), measuring 38 cm (1 ft 3 in) from snout to vent. The record was set in March 1991 by a cane toad owned by a Swedish man.
«When we got back to base, it weighed 2.7kg, which could be a new record,» Gray said of the newly discovered «Toadzilla.»
The team had initially considered naming the large amphibian Connie after Conway National Park, Gray said in an interview with state broadcaster ABC on Friday, but ultimately decided to name it after the fictional monster.
“We named it Toadzilla and quickly put it in a container so we could remove it from the wild,” Gray said in the statement.
Not unlike his namesake, «Toadzilla» was seen as a serious threat to his environment.
«A cane toad that size will eat anything that can fit in its mouth, and that includes insects, reptiles and small mammals,» Gray said.
While pigeons and rats are considered stubborn pests in many countries, cane toads take the crown as one of Australia’s most invasive pests.
With this in mind, the giant toad was «humanely euthanized», according to a statement from the Queensland Department of Environment and Science, due to the risk of environmental damage.