Thousands of protected frogs seized in Assam

Published: Friday, 7 September, 2007, 01:12 AM Doha Time

GUWAHATI: Police in northeastern India have recovered several bags full of
thousands of protected frogs, with officials saying they were destined for
French plates.

A police patrol spotted 14 bags containing the bullfrogs by a highway near
the Kaziranga National Park in Assam, likely abandoned by smugglers who had
been tipped off over police checks.

"This is a huge seizure and the consignment in all likelihood was destined
for France via Bangladesh where it is considered a delicacy much in demand,"
Ashok Kumar, vice chairman of the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), said
yesterday.
The official said frogs were being killed in Bangladesh and their legs
removed and frozen before being smuggled to France.
"Once frozen it could attract good money," Kumar said. "It appears there is
an organised catching of bullfrogs in Assam."
Frogs' legs are one of France's best known delicacies, but the catching and
rearing of the amphibians was banned in the country in 1980 due to dwindling
numbers.

According to 2005 figures, France legally imports around 3,000 to 4,000
tonnes of frozen frogs' legs, mainly from Indonesia and China. In France,
the dish is now mainly found in the top restaurants.

The dish can also be found in parts of China, Vietnam and Cambodia.

The Indian bullfrog is the largest Indian frog and grows up to 15cm in
length. It is yellowish or olive green.
The species - native to south Asia - was listed as protected by the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora (CITES) in 1994 after being depleted by heavy trade.

The wildlife official said the recovered frogs have been freed, although
several hundred of them had died of suffocation before the police made the
discovery.

In 1997, a shipment en route to Canada from Vietnam containing the legs of
450,000 Indian bullfrogs was intercepted in the Netherlands. - AFP