So, I got this idea in my noggin, right? To go out and actually find one of these ansonia latidisca. You hear folks go on about ’em, some rare Bornean toad, and I thought, “Yeah, I’ll give that a whirl. How tough can it be to spot a toad?”
Figured I’d just pop over to a likely spot. You know, pack a lunch, my old boots, maybe my camera if I was feeling fancy. Expected to be back by dinnertime with bragging rights. Simple. That was the plan, anyway.
Well, let me tell you, it went sideways fast. First off, trying to get a straight answer on where these critters actually live? Forget about it. One guy online says, “Oh, they love those super fast, rocky streams.” Then you read somewhere else, “Nah, slow, mucky bits of water, that’s their jam.” It was like everyone had a different story. I even heard one local fella claim they only show up if you whistle a certain tune after a thunderstorm. Total chaos, information-wise.
And then there was my big expedition. I actually teamed up with this character, let’s just call him “Baz.” Baz fancied himself a bit of an expert, “seen ’em loads of times,” he said. So, off we trotted. Baz’s idea of a “path” was basically wrestling with vines and hoping for the best. My feet were squelching in my boots inside of an hour. And his “prime location”? Turned out to be right next to a noisy picnic spot. Real wilderness, that was. We spent two solid days, got eaten alive by every bug known to man, saw a couple of very ordinary frogs, but not a sniff of an ansonia latidisca. Baz mostly just moaned about his dodgy knee and how “they ain’t where they used to be.”
What a complete waste of my weekend, that was. And the cash! Petrol, snacks, and Baz’s “guiding services” – which I’m pretty sure just funded his next few pints. I dragged myself home, covered in mud, bitten to bits, and feeling like a proper mug.
It really got me thinking about this whole ansonia latidisca hype. Are these toads really so ninja-like, or was I just having a shocker of a time? Or maybe, just maybe, I was a bit of a chump for believing Baz. You see all these glossy photos, these TV shows where they find amazing creatures in five minutes. But the actual doing of it, for a regular bloke like me? It was just a lot of sweat, a lot of dirt, and bugger all to show for it at the end of the day.
It’s kind of like a lot of these “amazing experiences” people bang on about. Everyone’s got an opinion, everyone’s an expert from their armchair. But when you actually try to get your hands dirty, it’s a different kettle of fish entirely. You end up running around in circles, getting ripped off, and wondering why you bothered.
So, my big “practice session” with ansonia latidisca? Yeah, it was an experience, alright. Not the one I signed up for, but definitely one I won’t forget. Next time, I reckon I’ll just watch a documentary. Less chance of trench foot and dodgy “experts.”
