KATHMANDU, MAY 1
Frogs are amazing creatures distributed around the globe. They are known by their unique calls, which they use for communication purposes. Frogs are bioindicators because their skin is semi-permeable, allowing them to detect slight changes in the environment, such as temperature, rainfall, and pollution.
Frogs also help to control pests by feeding mosquito larvae and keeping us safe from malaria. They also help control pests in paddy fields. Newar people worship frogs by offering them food.
Frogs are considered a remark of the rainmaker, so when there is a long drought, people often perform frog marriages to please the rain god.
However, due to unplanned urbanisation and land fragmentation, there is habitat loss for frogs. Now the Land of Province is also turning into concrete jungle as the population is growing and frog habitats are being damaged.
Similarly, the release of waste gets mixed into rivers and ponds from industries, which is affecting the health of frogs. People also consume frogs, which has severely affected them. In Nepal, in high mountains, they eat the frogs and call them "Paha," and in Tarai, they call them "Paawo" or "Paha."
They are given to lactating women or pregnant women to boost their immunity or for delicacy purposes. They are also given to people suffering from diarrhoea. This has resulted in overharvesting of frogs due to the high consumption rate. Moreover, the Bull Frog is also dissected in the science lab, and due to this, they are getting threats. To solve this issue, we can reduce the number of dissecting frogs or use a 3D model of frogs for teaching purposes.
This motivated a young researcher, Bishal Neupane, 26 years old, to conduct Save the Frogs Day to foster local communities to help in saving frogs in Nepal by conducting outreach activities and to mark SAVE THE FROGS! Day in Madhes Province on April 28, 2024.
It was a collaboration with ShreeThaani Mai Community Forest Users Group, Simara, Bara and Simara Public English School for the support, permission and venue for this event.
"As it's commonly understood, the Tarai region serves as Nepal's breadbasket. However, to enhance yields, farmers are excessively using harmful chemicals and pesticides on their crops. This practice has had a detrimental impact on the frog population in the area, yet many farmers remain unaware of it. Consequently, there's a pressing need for community outreach programs and activities to educate them about the consequences of their actions," said Neupane.
"So, with help from SAVE THE FROGS! And also from the Katie Adamson Conservation Fund, Nepal Conservation and Research Center. There will be more sessions around Madhes province about the frogs. Throughout the event, the PowerPoint presentation was about frogs, face painting was done, naturewalking and day herping were done, a frog diet game was played, and a drawing game was played to engage and make them familiar with frogs."
Similarly, Santosh Bhattarai, herpetologist at Nepal Conservation and Research Center, shared that Frogs not only in Nepal but globally are facing underpinning threats due to multiple reasons, and some of them are habitat loss, habitat modifications, illegal trade, and pollution, especially water pollution.
"Globally, two out of every five frog species face such threats. In Nepal, there are 56 species of amphibians, 54 of which are frogs and toads. Nepalese frogs face similar threats," he said, adding.
"Frogs matter because they have two phases in life. First, they start their lives in water, and when they are fully developed, they use land to survive and reproduce. And they intake water through their skins because they have permeable skins. So, if there is any harmful substance, like chemicals in water, it will also enter the frog's body, and ultimately, the frog will die. This simply indicates that frogs indicate whether the source water is pure or not. Therefore, the frogs are the best ecosystem indicator."
"They are both predators, which means they eat insects and pests while also biologically controlling them. They act as prey, and many species, including birds and snakes, survive by eating frogs, so they are important, and frogs play an important role in the ecosystem and food chain," Bhattarai told THT.
However, in Nepal, they are not considered protected. The government of Nepal does not have any priority programs for saving frogs. The government has listed 27 mammal species, including tigers, rhinos, and nine bird species, but none of the frog species are listed as priority species to be conserved, according to Bhattarai.
"Therefore, voluntary programs are critical not only to saving frogs but also to maintaining ecosystems and benefiting humans. As a result, we are attempting to promote conservation in Nepal, and Save the Frogs Day is one such event for the benefit of humanity," he stated.
