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19 June 2017 Effects of Toe-Clipping on Growth, Body Condition, and Locomotion of Cane Toads (Rhinella marina)
Cameron M. Hudson, Gregory P. Brown, Richard Shine
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Abstract

Toe-clipping is a standard technique for marking reptiles and amphibians individually, but concerns have been raised about the impact of the practice on animal welfare, survival, and behavior. We used a long-term mark-recapture dataset to investigate the impact of toe removal on free-ranging adult Cane Toads (Rhinella marina). Our analysis of 213 toads showed no impact of the number of toes removed on growth rates for mass or snout–urostyle length, nor any effect on body condition. Trials with sub-adult toads on a laboratory raceway revealed a short-term impact of toe-clipping on willingness to move (i.e., decreased immediately post-clipping), but no other significant impacts on locomotion. In summary, toe-clipping had minimal effects on Cane Toad locomotor ability, growth rate, or body condition.

© 2017 by the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists
Cameron M. Hudson, Gregory P. Brown, and Richard Shine "Effects of Toe-Clipping on Growth, Body Condition, and Locomotion of Cane Toads (Rhinella marina)," Copeia 105(2), 257-260, (19 June 2017). https://doi.org/10.1643/CE-16-564
Received: 14 December 2016; Accepted: 1 March 2017; Published: 19 June 2017
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