When it comes to frogs, we are all familiar with it. When we were in our hometown, every time after the rain, there would be a sound of "croak, croak, croak" in front and behind the house. Some of these sounds were small toads, and some were croaks. Loud frogs, some sullen toads

When it comes to frogs, we are all familiar with it. When we were in our hometown, every time after the rain, there would be a sound of "croak, croak, croak" in front and behind the house. Some of these calls were very small soil toads, and some There are frogs with loud croaks, toads with muffled sounds and pimples all over their bodies, and air toads with swollen bodies. These categories are the most common.

There were really too many frogs in my hometown in the countryside in the 1990s. It is no exaggeration to say that you could trample a few to death while walking by the water. You may not believe it. When I was a child, my home was a tile-roofed house. Whenever the temperature rose in spring, When the weather is high, frogs are always found in the house. It is estimated that they enter the house through the cracks in the wall in autumn and hibernate inside! (The house at that time was relatively humid due to its relatively low foundation.)

By the late 1990s, there were very few frogs and toads, mainly due to serious hunting and changes in the environment. In the late 1990s and around 2000, every summer night, flashlights used to catch frogs could be seen everywhere beside ponds, ditches, and small river banks.

Later, frogs became protected animals and were prohibited from being captured, but their population did not improve! Because the environment changed after 2000, rainfall in decreased significantly. There is water in ponds, ditches and rivers when it rains. If it doesn't rain, there will be no water. The habitat of this kind of water-dependent animals is gone, and the density is also reduced.

But what is gratifying is that with the rise of breeding industry, bullfrogs have entered thousands of households. The meat of the bullfrog is very tender and tough, and tastes very delicious. It has few bones, and the bullfrog is very large. Artificially bred edible bullfrogs can grow up to about 2 kilograms. Bullfrogs currently on the market generally weigh about 0.5 kilograms, and adult bullfrogs generally weigh about 1.5 kilograms.

One such big bullfrog is enough to eat, but bullfrogs are not the largest frogs. There is a frog in Africa that can weigh more than 3 kilograms and more than 1 meter in length. It is known as the "African Giant Frog".

African Giant Frog

In 1906, the famous amphibian expert Paul Ballenger discovered an unrecorded giant frog in southern Cameroon, Africa and northern Equatorial Guinea, named it Giant Frog, also known as African Giant Frog. Giant frog.

The African giant frog belongs to the Splendid subclass, the order Anura, the new suborder Rana, the family Rana, the genus Giganotosaurus, the species African giant frog, and has no subspecies. In most people's minds, the largest frogs are only 1-2 kilograms, and even bullfrogs are only 3-4 kilograms. However, this kind of frog can exceed 3 kilograms, which means it can exceed 6 kilograms. It is called "the best among frogs". big mac".

An adult male African giant frog has a length of more than 1 meter with its hind legs spread out and an eyeball diameter of up to 2.5 centimeters. It has a triangular head and a flat and wide body. has green-brown skin on its back with granular warts on the skin. The skin of the abdomen is light yellow-green. The hind legs are long, the front legs are short and stout, and all feet are broadly webbed.

lives near streams in tropical rainforests and rarely leaves water sources. After adulthood, it hides under the shade of trees, in stone crevices, or underwater during the day. Its main food is insects, scorpions, crustaceans, fish, and small birds. Feed on animals, small mammals, lizards, or other frogs.

It is very active at night and likes to look for food alone along the river. The immature African giant frogs spend most of their time underwater. When they become adults, they will occasionally bask in the sun on rocks. Their jumping ability is very strong, and their strong lower limbs allow them to jump more than 5 meters high. They are good at jumping.

Why is the African giant frog so big?

So why are giant African frogs so big? In fact, any species, except for the giant species itself, cannot do without 4 points, otherwise the chance of forming a giant individual will be relatively slim!

One is a suitable environment. African giant frogs live in the hot and humid virgin forests, creeks and rivers in the southern part of Cameroon and northern Equatorial Guinea . It is inaccessible, with an annual average temperature between 25-29°, and a winter temperature of around 20°, with no frost all year round.

Suitable temperature is an innate condition for biological growth. Only when the temperature is suitable, can they grow healthily. However, the living environment of the African giant frog is not optimistic, because with human activities, a large number of virgin forests have been cut down and cleared for farming, causing serious damage to the living environment of the giant frog.

The second is sufficient food. If you want to grow up, you must have sufficient food. So is there sufficient food in the habitat of the African giant frog? It can be said unequivocally: "It's enough." Because it grows in tropical rainforests, known as the "Lungs of the Earth", they have heavy rainfall and are rich in plants, animals, insects, etc.

The African giant frog is not picky about food. It will eat anything. It can eat insects on land and catch small birds. It can eat fish in the water, including snails. It is a sufficient food source for their survival. There is no need to worry about growth, and it is natural that it can form a huge individual.

Three's own defensive nature, No matter what species, if it does not have a defense mechanism, then the only outcome waiting for it is decline. African giant frogs have their own defense mechanism. First, they spend most of their time underwater before reaching adulthood, which reduces the chance of being caught and preyed upon by predators.

Adult African giant frogs have extremely strong hind limbs and are good at jumping. They can jump more than 5 meters high, and they will not leave the water source too far. If they encounter danger, they will kick off their legs and jump into the water. , leaving the predator staring! This is its defense mechanism when encountering danger.

A suitable growth environment allows it to grow all year round. It has plenty of food and can eat anything without being picky. In addition, its own defense measures allow it to jump up to 5 meters high. These are the prerequisites for the African giant frog to grow into a giant individual. Although they form giant individuals, they also become cash cows!

Why has the African giant frog become a cash cow?

Legend has it that there is a tree that can produce wealth and receive money. If it falls, it can be regenerated. This tree is a money tree, and it is also used to describe getting something for nothing. And the African giant frog has become a cash cow for the locals!

According to reports: African giant frogs were still relatively common in southern Cameroon and northern Equatorial Guinea in Africa at the end of the last century. However, 90 years later, due to nearby villagers deforestation and land reclamation for farming, river water pollution caused serious damage to the environment where the giant frogs live.

In particular, large-scale hunting and illegal trading have put African giant frogs at risk. Local giant frogs are caught not only for their own consumption, but also for sale in the market. A 3-kilogram African giant frog is worth about US$4, and a larger one sells for nearly US$10. Giant frogs have become a cash cow in the local area.

In southern Cameroon and northern Equatorial Guinea, the locals were very poor in the late 1990s and had almost no source of livelihood. Catching a single African giant frog could feed a family for several days or even a week.

According to surveys, the size of giant frogs has dropped by 50% in the past three generations, and has even become extinct in some areas! 《The International Union for Conservation of Nature 》lists giant frogs as an endangered species.

With the massive decline of giant frogs , Guinea has to set up a protected area to protect the habitat of giant frogs, set a limit of 300 giant frogs per year for export, and consider artificial breeding plans. Although the local government has introduced various protective measures, illegal transactions are still going on, mainly driven by profits.

Can African giant frogs be introduced and bred?

Large plate chicken One chicken and one plate of vegetables, then an African giant frog can completely become a large plate frog. Since the African giant frog is so large, can it be introduced and bred? I can only say that it is difficult for three reasons.

One is whether the breeding is successful. Guinea is only considering an artificial breeding plan. Now I don’t know whether the artificial breeding is successful! Successful artificial breeding requires a lot of time, and this time cannot be completed in a few years.

The reproduction and growth stages of giant frogs must be successfully studied, and then they can be sold on the market only after being demonstrated. This time is longer, and even if the breeding is successful, it will not be available in a short time, because it takes a lot of time to artificially release it into its habitat, etc.

The second one is an alien species, the African giant frog is an alien species, and the introduction and breeding requires cumbersome procedures. For example: the introduction of must have clear purposes and requirements, quarantine work to prevent the entry of viruses and the like, introduction procedures, post-introduction selection work, etc. require a lot of proof, as well as various testing experiments, etc.

In the last century, my country introduced bullfrogs, tilapia, rusta roob, etc., and their impact on the environment is immeasurable! And they cannot be truly eliminated. It is easy to introduce them, but it is difficult to prevent their harm!

Third, we can learn from the introduction cases of other alien species. There is an introduction case in Australia that you can refer to. In the sugarcane forest of a small town in Queensland, northeastern Australia, the highly toxic Taipan snake (toxic is more toxic than rattlesnake 300 times stronger ) actually died in large numbers, why is this?

Later, scientists discovered through tracking that the Taipan snake was actually poisoned to death by a toad! This toad is called the Giant Cane Toad and is native to South America and Central America. It turned out that the residents of the small town found that there were many pests and rats in the sugar cane forest. In order to ensure the quality of the sugar cane without using pesticides, they released giant cane toads. Unexpectedly, the Taipan snake, a highly venomous snake, was poisoned to death after swallowing the cane toads. Got it! Not only did it not achieve the effect of not using pesticides, it had the opposite effect. The successful breeding of

takes a lot of time, and there is currently no record of successful breeding. The introduction of exotic species requires a lot of information and scientific demonstration. Many introduction cases are not practical, etc., and bullfrogs have already been introduced, which is unlikely. Introducing the African giant frog.

And even if it is introduced, it is impossible to grow into such a huge individual, and it is unlikely that one frog can grow into a pot of vegetables. For example: Macrobrachium rosenbergii can grow to an individual of more than 1 kilogram in the Mekong River basin, but after introduction, it is generally There are no more than 1 ounce sold on the market, so don’t think too perfect!

Finally, don’t catch frogs or toads

Frogs or toads are amphibians. They mainly live in rivers, ponds, swamps, rice fields, etc. Where there is water, they can use their skin to breathe briefly in the water. They lie dormant during the day and emerge at night. Their main food is for insects.

According to statistics: an adult frog or toad can prey on 70 bugs in a day and night, and can eliminate about 15,000 bugs in a year. These bugs are mainly agricultural pests. has the function of maintaining ecological balance and can better control pests in farmland, thereby increasing crop yields.

That’s why people call it the “protector of crops”. Because of human hunting and environmental pollution, the number of frogs is getting smaller and smaller, and there are more and more bugs in farmland. Drugs have to be used to control the density of insects. , and the residue of the drug is relatively high, thus entering an infinite cycle. Therefore, frogs or toads are very useful animals for agriculture.

Frogs generally live in farmland, where pesticides are often used, and pests develop resistance. After frogs eat the pests, pesticide residues accumulate in the frog's body. If the frog is eaten, the pesticide residues will enter the human body.

Moreover, frogs are hosts to a variety of parasites and viruses and bacteria, which cannot be completely eliminated even after stir-frying, high temperature or deep-frying, which is very harmful to human health. Moreover, frogs are now protected animals, so do not eat them. .