Goliath Frogs About the Size of Domestic Cats Are Endangered Due To Overhunting, Pet Trade [Report]

Goliath frogs, the largest living frog, are endangered, but a project already aims to rescue them to help them survive before they get extinct.

Saving Goliath Frogs

Cedrick Fogwan is determined to help goliath frogs survive amid their decreasing number. He had handled one in a rescue mission, and the Cameroonian conservationist was so captivated by it that he decided to set up a project to help the endangered species survive, BBC reported.

Fogwan said he found the goliath frog unique, noting that it's the biggest frog in the world. He added that it's not something that can be easily found somewhere else.

According to him, the people in the area considered themselves blessed to have something like the goliath frog. They even associated it with some cultural value.

However, there has been overhunting of goliath frogs for food and pet trade in Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea, where they exclusively live. They live beside rivers and streams that are fast destroyed, prompting their numbers to decline, and now they are on the official extinction Red List.

The conservation team is working on persuading the hunters to become citizen scientists and record sightings of goliath frogs instead of hunting them for food. They also teach the local groups to set up snail farming as an alternative source of food.

The efforts in conserving the largest frogs in the world worked as the team received a call from a former poacher reporting a frog that a neighbor had captured. Fogwan rescued the frog and returned it to the wild.

The conservationist was confident that they could keep the frog forever.

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What Is the World's Largest Frog?

Goliath Frog, also known as the giant slippery frog and giant bullfrog, is the largest frog species, according to Discover Wildlife. They can grow up to 32 centimeters and weigh up to 3.25 kilograms. They can be as big as a domestic cat.

According to San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, they do not start so big. When goliath frogs are tadpoles, they are the same size as the average frogs. The adult goliath frogs look like other adult frogs except for their size - they are a whole lot bigger.

They are reportedly around longer than humans, having lived for 250 million years. However, there is still a lot to learn about them. Scientists have been studying new things about them and what they can do to protect these amazing creatures better.

Regarding parental instincts, they do little things differently than other frogs. The male builds a nest of rocks and gravel near a riverbank. They wrestle with other males to breed with females.

The wrestling and rock moving could be why male goliath frogs are bigger than females, which is unusual for frogs. The female lays thousands of eggs in the nest, and that's when parenting stops.

Tadpoles are left to fend for themselves, and goliath frog tadpoles are picky eaters. They only eat certain plants near waterfalls and the banks of swift rivers, so they are only found in one location.