The man who wants to save the biggest frog in the world
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It is the size of a cat but is an amphibian: the biggest frog in the world it has existed on Earth since before the dinosaurs, yet today it is in danger of disappearing due to man. Capable of weighing up to three kilos and measuring nearly 80 centimeters in length if you count its elongated limbs, the goliath frog (Goliath frog) is an amphibian that once inhabited ponds and mountainous areas of Cameroon And Equatorial Guinea but over the years it has turned into a species in way of extinction above all because of the anthropic pressure given that between hunting (for food) and destruction of the habitat the number of specimens has decreased by 70% in the last 15 years.
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Yet this gigantic frog in Africa it is essential to maintain various balances: from those of natural ecosystems to the precious help to protect crops, given that it is greedy for insects that can jeopardize crops. Because of its strategic role and also because of its incredible size that makes it unique in the world, a local heritage to be preserved, a project was born in Cameroon to try to save it by any means.
Leading the Conservation Leadership Program is Cedrick Fogwan Nguedia, Cameroonian environmentalist with the dream of being able to snatch the goliath frog from the clutches of extinction. Nguedia’s work was initially based above all on making people aware not to eat the big frog – a practice that has been going on for years – but to protect it in the event of rare sightings. His information campaigns in recent months have already borne their first fruits: the conservationist has in fact received a call from a former poacher, now involved in the protection of the amphibian, who had come across a neighbor who had captured a goliath frog and was ready to eat it. Cedrick intervened and convinced the man to bring the animal back to nature: an initial success that laid the foundations for a new protection programme.
The Conservation Leadership has also started projects to help people get other local food sources, for example by raising snails instead of eating frogs. In parallel, conservation plans and studies continued: in December 2022, for the first time in years, a new nesting site was found near the Mount Nlonako Reservea find that is a symbol of great hope for the future of the species.
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‘When I found out that this species was unique – the largest in the world – I thought it was something not easily found elsewhere and I was proud of it. People in the area today say they are lucky to have something like this and credit the animal a cultural value. We must continue to believe that we can help and protect it” said Cedrick Fogwan Nguedia after the discovery of the nesting site, recalling his personal emotions when he held a goliath frog in his hand for the first time, almost ” like holding a baby in your arms”.
This species is still little known by science today and according to the Cameroon environmentalist it is essential to continue studying it also to understand, for example, its role and its value for the well-being of ecosystems. To achieve this, more and more hunters or people accustomed to eating them today have been introduced to citizen scienceencouraged to report and record sightings instead of capturing amphibians.
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The ‘citizen scientist’ project will provide the basis for creating a management plan capable of having positive long-term impacts. Awareness campaigns will then be conducted in schools and with village elders through gods focus group to explain the importance of this species that is believed to have existed for more than 250 million years, one of the few amphibians still alive that populated the Earth before the dinosaurs.
After all, as Nguedia concludes, “now that we know that the species has not disappeared, we can and must study the amphibian in more detail, monitor its presence and help protect this endangered species. We must allow it to live forever and continue to be proud of his presence”.
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