*To all who are concerned about frog annihilation:* My early memories of frog catching were when I used to accompany my father in the month of April during our month long vacations spent in Colva.
My father would borrow a couple of 'cobulem' (a net wrapped around an almost circularly bent stick) from the local fisherman whose house we used to rent for the month and armed with his 12 bore gun to hunt for occasional 'bokin' (white or grey herons), some straw and a match box we would go to the nearby ponds. There used to be a number of holes around the periphery of the pond and we would pile some straw and burn it at one hole and place the 'cobulem' in front of the adjacent holes. In no time, water snakes called 'leonen' and frogs would leap out of the holes and we would let the snakes pass and catch the frogs. Later on in our late teens and early adulthood, after the first monsoon showers, normally towards the end of May / beginning of June, many of us in Goa would dig out the torch lights and the head lights from the cupboard, buy a new set of batteries and, after dinner, we would go in groups of 4 or 5, to remote areas in search of frogs. We would encounter scorpions and dodge snakes but in general they were enjoyable outings spiced with a bottle of 'urrac', and we would return by midnight with gunny bags full of yellowish green frogs, just out of hibernation. Before we went home we would each take a share of frogs. The next day was spent killing, skinning and cleaning the frogs; except for the skin, the entrails and the heads, all the frog meat was stored in various packets in the freezer. The frog meat was relished as 'xec-xec', 'xacuti' and 'costeletas' with sweet mango salad and the backs were used for soup. Way back in 1985 when I was sailing as a Marine Engineer, I was based for some time in Singapore and I read an article in The Straits Times about a guy who had successfully started a frog farm locally. As I love frog meat, I managed to find the frog farm located somewhere in Jurong and saw for myself and how successful frog farming was and how nice it would be if we could start such farms in Goa. As many people in Goa are very fond of frog meat (which is locally referred to as 'jumping chicken') even though the ban exists, the sale of 'jumping chicken' has increased in restaurants where it is sold clandestinely, at exorbitant rates. This delicacy, cooked and sold, is from the frogs caught in the rice fields, contaminated with pesticides and other chemicals which, is detrimental to humans; the presence of these toxins do not affect any change in taste and as such we are unaware that they accumulate in our system with latent effects on health. so that we could have clean frog meat without eating the frogs exposed to pesticides and fertilizers, available any time of the year. Frog meat is* "Zero cholesterol, bags of protein, far tastier than chicken". *India is facing food crisis and more and more food items have to be made available for the ever rising population. When I returned to India, I was informed in the Office of Deputy Conservator for Wildlife that all frogs (Rana Species) come under Schedule IV Sr.No. 13, of The Government of India (Protection of Wildlife & Forests), 1985, and so there is a ban on all frogs which includes possession, catching and killing of frogs. The late Mr.Humayun Abdulali (1914-2001), was a doyen of Indian ornithology, a pioneer naturalist and conservationist. In collaboration with the Forest Department, he drafted the Bombay Wild Birds and Wild Animals Protection of 1951, which later served as the model for the present Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. His investigations into the role of frogs in controlling agricultural pests finally convinced the Government of India to ban the export of frog legs. In fact, the wild populations of frogs, toads, salamanders and other amphibians are declining throughout the world. Scientists suspect greater atmospheric ozone and the increased incidence of ultraviolet radiation, acid rain, the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, increased urbanization and industrialization and other forms of environmental pollution, but the exact causes for the rapid disappearance of frogs and other amphibians are unknown. In Goa, environmentalists blame human consumption as the main reason for this malaise. This year the worlds conservationists have decided to declare 2008 as 'the year of the frog'. Much has been written in the local papers recently about 'saving the frogs'. This topic comes up year after year, especially at the onset of monsoons, when frogs start popping off the ground after their long 'siesta'; however, every year sees the number of frogs reducing. Just banning the frog catching and making the eating of frogs illegal will not be able to achieve anything in saving the frogs from extinction unless breeding and cultivation of frogs is started in India. Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) is an organization of The United Nations "helping to build a world without hunger" and they offer the know-how in frog cultivation. Commercial Frog Farm which is carried out today in a number of countries and it has proved to be viable. If such commercial frog farms exist in the U.S., Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Brazil, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and even Russia, why can't we do the same here? This would result in more jobs and food produced, which India is badly in need of. There are two species of frogs that can be reared on a commercial basis, namely: The American "Bull frog" (Rana Catesbeiana) which can grow to 20 cms and the locally available "Tiger frog" (Rana Tigrina) which can also grow to about 15 cms in length; both could be used for the purpose of breeding. Once this concept is introduced and accepted here, India could easily be the largest consumer and once again, a potential exporter. Before this ban, India used to be one of the largest exporters of frog legs. USA is at present the highest consumer of frog legs, followed by France, Canada, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Japan. Once the frog meat becomes available like chicken broilers, produced in large scale and in clean environment, then supermarkets and wholesale outlets would buy them in enormous quantities; big restaurants would want them shipped out on ice; people will come by and pick them up directly from farms; high schools and colleges would need frogs for their biology classes and laboratories could use them for medical and pharmaceutical experiments. Only frog meat that is certified from these farms should be sold and the ban on poaching and catching frogs in the wild can continue. But the demand for frog meat will be met and the natural frog population will not be interfered with. Moreover, India could produce and boost in exports of frog legs and other related products and be once again the No.1 exporter of this commodity. I believe that after the ban was imposed, the 'frog legs' exports from Bangladesh have multiplied; possibly, many of these frogs are 'born in India', and clandestinely 'jumped across the border' in order to be exported from Bangladesh to the West. The Indian Board for Wildlife* *(IBWL) is the top notch advisory body in the field of Wildlife Conservation in the country and is headed by the Honorable Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh. Last year on the 12th of June 2007, I wrote to the Honorable Prime Minister with copies sent by e-mail to all concerned, appealing to him as a World Class Economist to reconsider the present ban on frogs and to issue a 'special license' or permit for the potential Commercial Frog Farming in India, as I was willing to start an experimental farm to pioneer this project. Unfortunately, a year has passed and not a single acknowledgement to this mail has been received by me. The countries mentioned earlier are much ahead of us, but I believe that India can easily catch up and supersede them. Unless The Indian Board for Wildlife* *(IBWL) is serious about the dwindling frog population and decides to implement some changes in the current ban on frogs, our grandchildren will only have the internet to tell them what 'used to be frogs'. Caetano Filipe Colaco. 13th June, 2008. (I have sent a copy of a similar article for publication to one of the national dailies on 10th June and I have not yet seen it printed in any form) On 6/12/08, aC <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: Cecil Pinto <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: Thu, Jun 12, 2008 at 7:11 PM > Subject: And the response, for your father > To: Ali <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > > Message: 1 > Date: Thu, 12 Jun 2008 02:55:21 +0200 > From: Clinton Vaz <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Re: [Goanet] Save the Frogs Campaign: Update in early June > To: Jim Fernandes <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, [EMAIL PROTECTED], WildGoa > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed > > Hi Jim, > > Thanks for your mail. I resisted writing back to you the last time you > claimed that you had just relished eating frog legs and was off back to > the US sometime in April, however I must reply to this mail. > > When i speak of frogs being eaten in Goa, in almost all cases its the > common Bull Frog (Hoplobatrachus Tigrenus). & occasionally the Grass > Frog (Hoplobatrachus Crassus) is also caught and eaten. There are > distinctive identification features for the Bull Frog and unfortunately > for most Goans that consider frogs a delicacy, this species is > classified as endangered since 1985 and is hance protected by wildlife > laws. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rana_tigerina While this species has > reduced due to other causes in most of India, it faces a bigger problem > in Goa as it's also considered a delicacy. If you are irresponsible to > encourage others violate the law, go ahead and do so, but remember, once > caught, they can face a fine upto Rs. 25,000/- and or a 3 year prison > sentence, even if they were caught with one frog! That's pretty stiff, > so I'm sure anybody knowing this would think twice. > > At one of the meetings, somebody did come up with the idea of frog > farms, but more thought has to go into this. You would need to get > Forest Department clearance for breeding (for the purpose of eating) an > endangered species. Frogs take a few generations to grow to adult size, > and after considering the amount in investment to contain them, feed > them, harvest them, its probably going to cost more per kilo of frog > meat, especially when its just the legs of the frog that are in demand. > Locals also seem to get a sense of adventure of going out into the night > to hunt for frogs, so just providing frog farms is not the ideal > solution that's going to solve all problems. > > While we have consistently campaigned to save frogs for the past 3 > years, we intensified the campaign this year and have started to notice > the results of our efforts. If we are unable to stop all the 'frog > partys' in peoples backyards this year, we will strive to do so with a > bigger campaign next year, with emphasis on awareness first, and > convictions later. There are many stakeholders that could also get > involved in the next campaign, the police, department of health, tourism > dept, WWF, and even other International organizations. > > While it's easy to criticize us for basically asking forest officials to > do their job, we have seen from increasing malaria infections, and > increasing instances of snakes in human habitations that the food chain > in nature, that's dependent on the frog is disturbed. Franky Gracias, > from Herald recently highlighted the increase in malaria infections, and > all the 40 snake rescue volunteers in Goa will tell you that the number > of snake rescue calls has increased over the years. Worldwide, 1/3 of > all amphibian populations are threatened, and frogs as group was > considered so endangered that 2008 is designated as 'year of the frog'. > http://www.yearofthefrog.org/ and > http://www.amphibianark.org/yearofthefrog.htm gives you more info. > However, as we are a non profit network of NGOs, we lack resources, but > not qualified persons to undertake a study. We welcome you to assist us > in obtaining financial assistance in undertaking a study on frog > populations to confirm the fact the frog populations are falling in Goa, > as in the rest of the world. > > Bigger restaurants in Goa that serve frog legs all year round have > been known to stockpile frog legs in freezers for the entire year. This > means that they fuel the demand for hunting of frogs, paying upto 65-75 > Rupees per frog to village youth. In 2006, I was witness to a person > that had 65 frogs in his bag and was hired by a famous South Goa > restaurant, Martins Corner. He even threatened calling Bonny, the > restaurant owner and the local politician Mikky Pacheco when we demanded > that the frogs be released. Hopefully, such confrontations will soon be > history. > > I look forward to a response from you. You are welcome to reply offlist, > if you wish. > > Have a nice day! > > Clinton.. > +46 762976399 > > Jim Fernandes wrote: > > This campaign cannot work. Period. > > > > As long as there are people in Goa who are willing to purchase frogs/frog > meat, there will always be suppliers to fill the void. It's simple demand > and supply economics. > > > > Even as you claim this has been a successful campaign, I have gotten > reports of people in my neighborhood (in Goa), having had frog parties in > their backyards. > > > > The only way, wild frogs can be left alone, is by legitimizing frog farms > in Goa (I have already detailed this in my previous post on the subject). > Short of this proposal, nothing else can work. > > > > I think, instead of going after frog meat lovers, who by-the-way do not > disturb peace in Goa, you guys should go after people who sell and drink > liqour in Goa - these are the folks who create the real law and order > problems for Goans and Goan families. Eating frog meat is illegal, while > boozing is legal - how crazy are we getting as a society? > > > > Anyway, what is the scientific basis on which WildGoa is claiming that > the frogs are being exterminated? Has anybody counted the frog population? > Do you know what their population growth rate is on an annualized basis? Do > you know how many frogs are consumed by snakes as against those consumed by > humans? Do you even know, at what rate, frogs are able to replenish > themselves? > > > > Finally, the restaurants that serve frogs in Goa, are doing so, all > around the year - not just in the monsoons. Hello ??? Do you know what that > means? > > > > These guys are maintaining their own little froggy farms, where they > illegally raise and serve frogs for most of the year. How do you imagine > they serve frogs during the months, when its not raining in Goa? > > > > Jim F. > > New York. > > Campaigner - Eat More Frogs !!! > > > > > > > -- > The HUB ((((www.hubontheweb.com))))
