Endangered Frogs Flown To Safety

Dozens of Giant Ditch Frogs, popularly known as Mountain Chicken Frogs, are being flown from the Caribbean island of Montserrat to London, to help prevent this greatly endangered amphibian from becoming completely extinct.

Scientists, who normally do not like to move animals from their natural habitat, had no choice but to do this, because the frogs have been dying at an alarming rate from the deadly chytrid fungus, which has taken over the island since earlier this year.

The fungus invades through the skin, which is what the frogs (and other amphibians) use to breath and feed. Infected frogs first get lethargic, then suffer from convulsions and ultimately die. Over the last two months, over 300 frogs have been killed by this fungus, prompting scientists to take the drastic action.

Last week, the first batch comprising of fifty frogs was cleansed with anti-fungal baths and flown to Zoo's in Britain and Sweden, where they are being kept in a special temperature-controlled environment.

Mountain Chicken Frogs, the largest of the frog species, can be found only on the Islands of Montserrat and Dominic. Over the years, the little amphibians have had more then their share of misfortune. Until 2007, these 2-pound critters, which get their name because their meat tastes like 'chicken', were considered an island delicacy, and served at restaurants. Then the island was hit by volcano eruptions, killing more of them, and now this.

They are very difficult to rear in captivity because of their huge appetite and unusual breeding patterns. Conservationists are therefore planning to create 'safe' zones on the island and bring these critters back home soon! We sure hope they succeed!

Sources: redorbit.com, guardian.co.uk, wikipedia.org