9th Annual Save The Frogs Day

Mural Frog Art

Amphibians around the globe are in real danger with some 250 species that have gone extinct forever in the last forty years, while one-third species of total diversity (over 7500) are seriously threatened with extinction. These historically resilient animals that emerged very long ago (300 million years old) on this the planet has been facing so much trouble recently due to human actions knowingly or unknowingly. 

Habitat fragmentation, land-use change, pesticide use, over-collection for food and pet trade, pollution, dissection classes, climate change, disease, and so many other factors acting either individually or synergistically have challenged the survival of amphibians. Large populations of the general public are still uninformed about the importance of amphibians in the ecosystem and the threats they face, which have also contributed to the fast decline of these species. That’s why every year on the last Saturday of April, there’s a special day where all the amphibian lovers celebrate ‘International Save The Frogs Day’ in different parts of the world. The reason behind it is to educate the uninformed public about amphibians and spread the message of frog conservation.

Participants of Save The Frogs Day Session I

This year's 9^th Annual Save The Frogs Day was marked in Nepal on April 28 at Resources Himalaya Foundation (RHF), Sanepa, Lalitpur with the financial help of WWF Nepal and support from SAVE THE FROGS! USA and EGH. The frog filled event had wider participation of school kids, university students, conservationists, academicians, and professionals. Mr. Biraj Shrestha, Research Officer of RHF and SAVE THE FROGS! Taskforce member was the event coordinator and supported by a bunch of volunteers from EGH executed the event plan into action. There were stalls of frog face painting, frog tabling, merch, bake sale and other activities that captivated the visitors.

Froggy volunteers

 ACTIVITIES

 Mural Art - Artists, Mr. Karun Dewan and his friend led the mural frog artwork on huge white cotton cloth with designs of flowers, mushrooms, plants, and amidst was a resting tree frog with a happy face. Later the coloring session was joined by every participant of the event from school kids to students and volunteers. The outcome was splendid.

Face painting - Ms. Sabita Gurung with other volunteers represented their artistic frog designs on the body parts of visitors.

Frog Tabling and Merch Sale - This stall was the information center for amphibians with frog info cards, paha conservation posters, t-shirts and other merchandise for sale. All the proceeds go to amphibian conservation endeavors in the future.

Photo Exhibition - Total of 17 amphibian photographs representing over eight species were exhibited with their general information and the locality they are known.

Short Video Clips

a.       Life history of Frog (02:34)

b.      Disappearing Frogs (03:47)

c.       Frog, Chemical, Water, You (17:28)

d.      The Thin Green Line (Chemical Runoff) -06:36

e.      Amphibian Ark Appeal (04:59)

f.        Disappearing Frogs (03:47)

Bake Sale - Yum! Cream and cherry topping cupcakes designed to resemble a frog head was at the bake sale. All the proceeds go to amphibian conservation endeavors in the future.

Frog Talk & Felicitation - Dr. Dinesh Raj Bhuju, General Secretary of RHF, highlighted a much-neglected fact that people have not actually understood frogs are real friends of humans as they help farmers by controlling farms insects and checking the population of vector insects. 

We had also announced an open call for ‘SAVE THE FROGS! Junior Art Competition’ with a deadline on April 25. We received a total of 39 submissions from grade III to IX students. The top three were awarded froggy gift hampers from Dr. Kamal Adhikari, Director of RHF. Later our guest of honor, Mr. Ugan Manandhar, Deputy Director, WWF Nepal, shared his few words about how necessary it has become that we need to think about frogs and not forget these tiny creatures while conserving the charismatic animals.

Video Message from Dr. Kerry Kriger - Ecologist and Founder of SAVE THE FROGS!, US-based amphibian conservation nonprofit, Dr. Kerry Kriger sent a 12-minute video message especially for the Nepalese people for helping to spread out amphibian conservation message in Nepal through  Save The Frogs Day events and greeted the organizers of this year’s event at RHF. He shared the history of Save The Frogs Day and how big it has grown in these years, with more than 1000 events held since 2009 involving 60 countries.

Closing Remarks - Prof Dr. Ram Chhetri, Chair of RHF had his concluding remarks about how anthropogenic activities have ultimately affected every species on this planet, including frogs. Later, he handed certificates of appreciation to our volunteers whose tireless efforts have brought this event into froggy fruition. 

Amphibian Conservation Talk @ Choice FM 90.4 MHz Gorkha, Nepal

Hear about amphibians, their status, ecological significance, threats, stream frogs (paha) and conservation effort at Manaslu Conservation Area, Gorkha district, western Nepal from Biraj Shrestha, Amphibian Researcher and Conservationist. 

Project supported by The Rufford Foundation, SAVETHEFROGS!, FON Nepal, MCAP-NTNC and others.

© Choice FM 90.4 MHz

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T-uNUcv9B0&feature=share

भ्यागुतो संरक्षणका लागि समिति !

किरण लोहनी/उज्यालो ।

गोरखा, चैत ७ – गोरखाको मनासलु संरक्षण क्षेत्रका विभिन्न ठाउँमा स्थानीय बासिन्दाकै सक्रियतामा पाहा अर्थात भ्यागुता संरक्षण थालिएको छ । 

संरक्षण क्षेत्रभित्र पर्ने साविकको ७ मध्ये ४ गाविसमा स्थानीय बासिन्दाले समिति नै बनाएर पाहाको संरक्षण थालेका हुन् । सिर्दिवासको फिलिम, चुम्चेतको लोप्पा, विहीको ड्याङ र प्रोक गाउँमा यस्तो समिति बनाइएको हो । 

‘स्थानीय बासिन्दाले शिकार गरेर तरकारीको रुपमा खाने गरेका रहेछन्’ पाहाको अध्ययनका लागि त्यहाँ पुगेका युवा अनुसन्धानकर्ता विराज श्रेष्ठले भन्नुभयो, ‘पाहाको महत्वबारे बताएपछि अब शिकार गरेर नखाने बरु संरक्षण गर्ने बताएका छन् ।’

वालीनालीमा जथाभावी किटनाशक औषधीको प्रयोग नगर्ने, बासस्थान वरपर फोहर नगर्ने, घर बगैंचा, स्कुल लगायत ठाउँको वरपर भएका पोखरीहरुको संरक्षण गर्ने स्थानीय बासिन्दाको प्रतिवद्धता रहेको छ । अनुसन्धानकै लागि मनासलु संरक्षण क्षेत्रमा झण्डै एक महिना बिताएका श्रेष्ठका अनुसार त्यहाँ केही नयाँ प्रजातिका पाहा फेला परेको छ । 

‘ढुंगाको चेपमा ठूलो समूहमा पाहाको बसाई रहेको पनि फेला पुर्‍यो’ श्रेष्ठ भन्नुहुन्छ, ‘उक्त रातो पाहाका बारेमा थप अनुसन्धान गर्नु जरुरी छ ।’ समुद्री सतहबाट ३ देखि ५ हजार मिटरको उचाईमा फैलिएको मनासलु संरक्षण क्षेत्र पाहाको लागि निकै उपयुक्त रहेको उहाँको भनाई छ । बासस्थानको नाश, किटनाशक विषादीको जथाभावी प्रयोग लगायतका कारण नेपालमा पाइने धेरैजसो प्रजातिको पाहा संकटपूर्ण अवस्थामा पुगेको श्रेष्ठले बताउनुभयो । 

पाहाको बच्चा अर्थात चेपागाँडाले जैविक फोहर खाएर पानी सफा राख्न सहयोग गर्ने अनुसन्धानकर्ताहरुले बताएका छन् । यस्तै लामखुट्टे, झिँगा तथा अन्य हानिकारक किरा फट्याङग्राहरुलाई खाएर प्रकृतिमा जिवाणुको संख्या कम गराउन पनि पाहाले नजानिदो गरि सहयोग पुर्‍याउने श्रेष्ठले बताउनुभयो । 

‘माछा, छेपारो, सर्प, चरा र अरु स्तनधारी जीवहरुको मुख्य खानेकुरा पाहा अर्थात भ्यागुतो नै हो ।’ उहाँ भन्नुहुन्छ, ‘जब पाहानै रहँदैनन् भने ती प्राणीलाई बाँच्न कठिन हुन्छ ।’ पाहाको सहयोगमा पानी शुद्ध वा दूषित कस्तो छ भनेर थाहा पाउन सकिने उहाँले बताउनुभयो । ‘चिकित्सा विज्ञानमा पनि भ्यागुतोको धेरै महत्व छ’ उहाँले भन्नुभयो, ‘चिकित्सा क्षेत्रमा प्राप्त भएका नोवेल पुरस्कारमध्ये १० प्रतिशत भ्यागुतोहरुकै अनुसन्धानबाट सफल भएका छन् ।’ तर नेपालमा भने भ्यागुतोको महत्वबारे जनसाधारणसम्म जानकारी पुग्न नसकेको ख्वपः कलेजबाट वातावरण विज्ञानमा स्नातकोत्तर गरेका श्रेष्ठको भनाई छ । 

विश्वमा पाहालाई माध्यम बनाएर धेरै रोगको उपचार विधि पनि पत्ता लागिसकेको भन्दै उहाँले नेपालमा पनि त्यसप्रकारको अनुसन्धान सम्भव रहेको बताउनुभयो । 

Published on March 20, 2017
URL: ujyaaloonline.com/news/72670/paha/

8th Annual Save The Frogs Day 2016 atop the Mountains

Save The Frogs Day this year on April 30 climbed high atop the mountains and was observed at Manaslu Conservation Area (MCA), Shree Buddha Secondary School at Philim, Sirdibas Village Gorkha district, Nepal. Manaslu Conservation Area is a biodiversity-rich region managed by National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) as Manaslu Conservation Area Project. 

Damaging, killing, torturing, disturbing wild animals/plants, and their habitat is strictly prohibited under different Acts of the Protected Area. MCA has seven villages and inhabited by Gurungs, mostly in southern parts, while Lamas and Tibetans reside in higher areas. Buddhism is the dominant religion in MCA, thus villages like Chumchet and Chhekampar are designated as ‘Kill-free’ zones for ages. Anyone charged guilty is penalized NPR 50,000 - 1,00,000 and two nights behind the bars.

In Sirdibas, fishing and collecting Paha (Mountain stream frogs) are considered normal. Paa liebigii and Chaparana sikimensis are two frogs heavily exploited in the region. MCA is reported to have 16 amphibian species. However, local communities were found to have basic to no understanding of the frogs' importance and global decline. Paha hunting for consumption because of delicacy and presumed health benefits is the primary threat to frogs here in Manaslu. Thus a team of Biraj, Min Bahadur & Suraj headed MCA walking three days to reach Philim, Sirdibas VDC for a frog conservation project “Saving Mountain Frogs (Paha) Before It’s Too Late; Conservation Effort at Manaslu ConservationArea, Gorkha District, Nepal”. I am very much indebted to The Rufford Small Grants (RSG) and The Pollination Project (TPP) for necessary funding, MCAP Office, Friends of Nature (FON) Nepal, SAVE THE FROGS!, DNPWC and local community for their co-operation and support.

MCAP office is located at Philim and manages various issues in the region. We met MCAP Head of Philim Office, Bishnu S Thakuri, and discussed our conservation work. He welcomed unique initiatives like ours that needed to be dealt with greater awareness. We then toured around the village, inviting the local community to join the 8^th Annual Save The Frogs Day on April 30, 3016. The major attractions of the event were SAVE THE FROGS! Speech, Frog Race, and Frog Art Contest.

People from all walks of life came to join the event despite their daily chores and community gatherings. Teachers, school kids, hoteliers, farmers, MCAP officers, and conservationists gathered at the meeting hall of the school. The building looked shabby with a pile of construction materials in a haphazard fashion. Few temporary living shelter tents were fixed to the school ground. Let me tell you that Sirdibas VDC lies just above the Barpak village which was the focal point of last year’s (April 25, 2015) disastrous 7.8 magnitude earthquake. Entire Barpak was destroyed during then and the nation suffered a huge irreplaceable loss. MCA even sustained damages in terms of houses, trails, schools, water availability, landslide, livestock loss, and human lives.

Anyway, we started our event at 9 AM, Min Bahadur acted as an emcee and gave a welcome note with the introduction. Biraj (RSG & TPP grantee) talked about overall Amphibians: Introduction, Status, Diversity, Habitat, Ecology, Importance, Threats, Gaps, and Our Role. In a group discussion for threat assessment, women complained that it’s mostly males that go for hunting Paha at night time. Those who were involved in hunting at least once in their life felt a warm blush. We then carried out the Frog Art Contest involving students from the school. The concept was very unique this time as we did the paintings on stone slates, which had been damaged in last year’s earthquake. Narendra, Man bahadur & Dhan Bahadur Gurung came first, second, third and awarded prizes.

Our Frog Race at the school ground was another fantastic fun-filled activity appreciated by locals. The winners were felicitated with froggy prizes and certificates. Mr. Bishnu Singh Thakuri gave concluding remarks about the event as a good initiative to conserve declining amphibians from MCA and asked locals to participate in paha conservation before it’s too late.

An Amolops formosus, commonly called Beautiful Stream Frog and ‘Raslang’ in the local language, was observed at nearby Yuwang river in Sirdibas VDC during the afternoon survey. It secretes slimy substance and creates odor as a defense mechanism which causes slightly burning kind of irritation if held in hand. Local people do not consume this frog because of its strong bitter taste. 

Snake lovers gather for the first time under one roof in Nepal

One evening I received a call from the King Cobra rescuer, Mahendra Katila, from Pokhara, Nepal. He shared a bit of his vision to assemble snake lovers from different corners of the country and organize the first snakes’ conservation seminar. With a degree in Law, Katila dai spends the majority of time talking about snakes, rescuing awe-inspiring king cobras, and making people aware of its importance. Much to my surprise, he tirelessly worked over the proposal, caught into hassle, but ultimately managed to fund the program “Snakes of Nepal: Issue of Conservation and Future Perspectives.”

It was a special moment to see the most uncommon people from different parts of Nepal under one roof sharing their experience with snakes. One privileged occasion to meet Dr. Chabilal Thapa, Bharatpur Hospital, Chitwan, who worked seriously over snake bite and management issues in Nepal. Dr. Khem B Karki, Member Secretary of Nepal Health Research Council (NHRC) urging the Government of Nepal to produce our own stock of Snake Anti-venom across the country. The Polyvalent Anti-venom vials we had in Nepal are imported from India and with rising pressure from Animal Rights in India to curb commercial production of anti-venom beyond India’s need, the High Court passed a bill for no exportation of anti-venom vials elsewhere. Dr. Karki (NHRC), thus, stressed upon initiating the production of snake anti-venom in Nepal before we face dire consequences from the short supply in the future. This was one of the main agendas of the seminar, along with conservation issues.

Dr. Chhabilal Thapa at the center

More than happy to meet the daring snake-man of Nepal, Prem Bista from Biratnagar who’s a retired Police officer but has rescued more than 300 deadly kraits and cobras from human settlements. He’s got a real knack for venomous snake handling and long experience in this field over 20 years. Last year while on a rescue, he got bitten by a Binocellate Cobra. But he remained very calm, strong internally, and won the struggle throughout the treatment. The bite left a scar over his left arm but Bista dai is hell-bent on rescuing more deadly venomous snakes. Great to see colleagues; Kamal Devkota, Jeevan Thapa, Chiranjeevi Khanal, Rishi Baral, Santosh Bhattarai, and Biraz Chaudhary who’s been passionately studying and rescuing snakes. New faces include Adv. Ram Kumar Acharya, lecturers from PN Campus, Dept. of Zoology, Pokhara, nature guides from Sauraha, students of forestry colleges (IOF), and snake charmers.

Prem Bista

Two days' meeting (May 27-28) concluded with a need for setting up an umbrella organization for Snakes Conservation and Anti-Venom production in Nepal. This was a great beginning and might be the first gathering of a bunch of people who are guided by none other than their passion for working with SNAKES in Nepal. See you next time.’

7th Annual Save The Frogs Day 2015

I still have mixed feelings about recalling on April 25, 2015, while I sit down to write this. Firstly, a massive 7.8 magnitude disastrous earthquake caused havoc throughout Nepal, damaging countless infrastructures and heavy casualties. The nation suffered an irreplaceable loss, while millions of people are facing great hardship in the aftermath of the disaster. Peace be upon the departed !!

Secondly, It was 7th Annual Save The Frogs Day on April 25. But we planned to observe it two days earlier (April 23) in Kathmandu with young graduates of Environmental Science, Forestry, Zoology, and conservationists. Our venue was Dr. Pralad Yonzon Memorial Conservation Chautari, Resources Himalaya Foundation, Naya bato, Sanepa, Lalitpur. I talked about Save The Frogs Day, Amphibians, Diversity, Distribution, Current status, Importance, Threats in Nepal, Legal Measures of Protection and How we can help? 

I gave them a brief outline of the underlying gaps and challenges of amphibian conservation across the country. Then, shared some of the really cool features of being an Amphibian Biologist as one likely gets to travel some really great riparian habitats, observing amazing amphibians and meet with a wide range of people from conservation, non-profits, government, media person, resource users and so forth.

http://kalikafm.com.np/index.php?pageName=news_details&id=32860&catId=8

Manaslu Herping in Flashback !

In the spring of 2012, I set off together with my colleagues for the Manaslu Conservation Area (MCA) to gather information on amphibians and reptiles as a part of my dissertation. Since this was before monsoon, my supervisor advised postponing my visit to a later date when plenty of rain saturates the soil. But the ones who funded the project forced me to flock together with my colleagues. For sure, I had the dim prospects about the findings as I was sent on a fool's errand. Anyway, the journey begun with a 20-kilo rucksack hung on the back, a 40-inch home-made snake hook and a DIY dip net :) 

Snake hook found nowhere else

From Lapu VDC, Gorkha no vehicle climbs uphill so the on-foot excursion began exploring cold-blooded critters nearby. Ubiquitous was the Himalayan rock lizard basking on boulders easily spotted because of the yellow blotches on dark brown background entirely over the dorsum. These robust agamas are the signature lizard of montane regions. Amazing to hear, these agamas are largely herbivores in their diet. 

Himalayan Rock Lizard

After 3 days, I reached Jagat - entry point of MCA and it started drizzling. Sighed with a little relief after hours of walking under the blazing hot sun, I perched on the stone fencing and felt something crept over my right foot. It was the same rock lizard, eh! When the sun shone again, I saw them more coming out of rock crevices and in human settlements adhesive to the walls. While taking pictures, one of the hoteliers interrupted, 'You can see hundreds of these in summer!' I began to interview him about herps of MCA and he told me to visit brooks of the mountains to see 'Paha' (mountain frogs). The next day, I traveled to Bihi village and then to Prok where I had to stay at Mr. Dorje's place. He was a traditional healer, called 'Amji' in the local language. He served me best with his profound knowledge of herbal medicine and ethno-herpetology. 

Mr Dorje and me @ his place

The next day, I went to every creek of Prok lifting stones, poking weeds beneath but unfortunately couldn't find a single 'Paha'. Then I recalled why my supervisor tried to halt my journey that season and equally seethed over the puerile decision of my funder. One should have a deep reverence for nature in order to be a good learner and this is what I'm gonna do the rest of my life as a wildlife enthusiast. At the end of the day, here's what I encountered that season of herping;

Peering beneath the rocks

Checklist of herpetofauna encountered in MCA throughout the field survey

S. No.	Scientific Name	Common Name	Nepali/Vernacular name	No. of Individuals recorded	Encountered Elevation (in m)
AMPHIBIAN (TOAD)
1	Bufo himalayanus (Gunther, 1894)	Himalayan Toad	Khasre bhyaguto	4	1601-2250
REPTILES (LIZARDS, SKINK & SNAKE)
2	Calotes versicolor versicolor (Daudin, 1802)	Common garden lizard	Chheparo, Girgit	8	1484-2512
3	Laudakia tuberculata (Hardwicke & Gray, 1827)	Himalayan rock lizard	Chheparo, Patharchatuwa	51	1438-2665
4	Asymblepharus sikimmensis (Blyth, 1853)	Sikkim skink	Bhanemungro	1	1682
5	Elaphe hodgsonii (Gunther, 1860)	Himalayan trinket snake	Sarpa, Wayana	1	1470

Bufo Himalayanus Gunther, 1894

Elaphe hodgsonii (Gunther, 1860)