Ban sale of frogs, says SAM

Farmed frogs being sold at the Batu Lanchang market in Penang.Pix by GARY CHEN/The Star/6 NOV 2016.

GEORGE TOWN: Frogs are being sold openly at markets here to the dismay of Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) which wants the Govern-ment to impose a ban on their capture, sale and killing.

SAM president S.M. Mohamed Idris said the amphibians should be protected as they played a role in reducing the mosquito population.

He said tadpoles fed on algae and plants, thereby keeping waterways clean.

He said the tadpoles of some frog species also ate the larvae and eggs of the Aedes mosquitoes.

“Mosquitoes carry diseases and kill 725,000 people worldwide per year. In Malaysia, there were almost 20,000 dengue fever cases last year alone,” Mohd Idris said in press release.

He also said that in Malaysia, there were two types of padi frogs — Rana cancrivora and Rana limnocharis — which were deemed ‘farmers’ best friend’ as they fed on padi pests such as stem borers and plant hoppers.

In demand: A trader seen selling frogs near the Air Itam market in Penang.

He said the number of frogs were decreasing due to the rampant clearing of jungles for cultivation and also due to pollu-tion from toxic chemicals which are easily absorbed by the am-phibians through their thin permeable skin.

“It is ironic that farmers prefer spraying their fields with expensive toxic chemicals rather than making use of frogs as efficient pest control.

“Herbicides, pesticides and chemical fertilisers remain frogs’ biggest threat,” Mohd Idris said.

He said the Rana cancrivora was in demand by local restaurants.

“At the markets, there is an irregular supply of frogs and they are readily snapped up by housewives whenever available.

“However, it is not known whether the voracious appetite for frogs has depleted the frog population in Malaysia as there has been no survey into their numbers,” he said.

A check by The Star yesterday found frogs being sold openly at Air Itam and Batu Lancang.

A 45-year-old trader at the Batu Lancang market said he was selling about 20 frogs a day at RM12 each.

“I get my supply from a frog farm in Kedah,” said the man who has been in the business for four years.

A couple who sold frogs at between RM5 and RM20 each by the roadside near the Air Itam market said their customers included students who bought the frogs to be dissected in school for their studies.