Defenders of Wildlife Blog

Frog Leg Trade Decimates Species and Causes Ecological Chaos
New report highlights dangers of international frog leg trade

WASHINGTON, D.C./MUNICH (July 26, 2011) – International wildlife conservation groups Pro Wildlife, Defenders of Wildlife, and the Animal Welfare Institute, issued a report today titled Canapés to Extinction: The international trade in frogs’ legs and its ecological impact. The report is the first comprehensive study of the frog leg market ever conducted and reveals an industry that is systematically devastating frog populations throughout the world and, subsequently, causing severe environmental impacts to natural ecosystems.

“Humans have been eating frogs for ages. But today the practice is not sustainable on a global scale,” said Alejandra Goyenechea, acting director of international conservation programs for Defenders of Wildlife. “Billions of frogs are traded internationally each year for human consumption, and that industry is responsible for depleting wild populations, spreading deadly disease, and allowing invasive species to destroy the health of native ecosystems.”

In recent years, the United States has imported an average of 2,280 tonnes (4.6 million pounds) of frog legs each year—the equivalent of 456 million to 1.1 billion frogs—and another 2,216 tonnes (4.4 million pounds) of live frogs for Asian-American markets. Most frog and frog leg imports to the U.S. come from China, Taiwan, Ecuador, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Vietnam, Mexico and Indonesia.

During the last decade, the European Union imported an average of 4,600 tonnes (9.2 million pounds) of frog legs each year—the equivalent of 1 to 2.3 billion frogs. Indonesia is the world’s leading supplier, providing 84 percent of total imports to the EU with the vast majority of frogs being caught in the wild. Belgium, France and the Netherlands are the top importers in the EU.

“The decline of many frog species is a global problem that is being greatly accelerated by just a handful of European nations,” said Sandra Altherr, director of wildlife programs for Pro Wildlife in Germany. “The capture and killing of native frogs is prohibited within the EU, so it is incomprehensible that we would be supporting environmentally disastrous practices abroad.”

American bullfrog

Until the mid-1980s, India and Bangladesh dominated the international frog leg export market. Severe exploitation resulted in the collapse of many wild frog populations in those countries, including two of the most sought-after species, the green pond frog and the Indian bullfrog. In turn, the decline of those species resulted in a dramatic increase in the use of pesticides, due to an explosion of insects and other agricultural pests previously kept in check by frogs. In 1985, the two frog species were protected with an Appendix II listing under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). India and Bangladesh subsequently banned exports, their native species have since recovered and the use of pesticides has been reduced.

However, in recent years, other countries have stepped in to fill the void and their frog populations appear to be headed for a similar fate. Indonesia, where billions of frogs are taken from the wild annually, and to a lesser extent China, Taiwan and Vietnam, where frogs are farmed very intensively, have now taken over the export market.

“We must take immediate action to protect frog species from being exploited for international trade,” said D.J. Schubert, a wildlife biologist with the Animal Welfare Institute. “Wild populations across Asia are already in trouble, and unregulated trade puts native species in the U.S. at even greater risk from deadly diseases that have been wreaking havoc on amphibians worldwide. It will take a coordinated effort from governments and the world’s conservation community to prevent the extinction of imperiled frog species and to protect our native species from harmful invasives.”

The report will be distributed to key government decision-makers, including those responsible for the implementation of CITES, with a request that they take immediate action to bring this unregulated trade under control.  Considering that the frog species dominating the frog leg trade are not currently protected under CITES, there is an urgent need for governments to secure CITES protections for them.

Click here to download the full report.

Believe it or not, African lions were making news in Switzerland last week. Though Defenders mostly focuses on domestic species that need our help, we also have a lean and mean team of international conservation experts that work hard to save imperiled species that not only need protection in the US but also around the globe. And last week, Defenders’ International Counsel, Alejandra Goyenechea, traveled to Geneva to help make a case for protecting species that are at risk due to the global wildlife trade.

The CITES Animals Committee convenes for its 25th meeting in Geneva, Switzerland last week.

Alejandra attended the 25^th meeting of the Animals Committee of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). This body of scientific experts provides advice and guidance to the Conference of the Parties, working groups and the Secretariat, which are ultimately responsible for enacting laws to protect imperiled wildlife from exploitation through international trade. Defenders was there to advocate for international trade that does not affect the survival of imperiled species, such as lions, sharks and frogs.

We don’t hear about it as often in the United States, but countless species are farmed, hunted or trapped and then shipped across borders as food, trophies, pets and medicinal products. Many of these practices are extremely unsustainable and threaten not only the populations that are being harvested, but also the native species where the animals are imported. Exotic pets, for example, are often released into the wild when their owners can no longer care for them. Some species, like Burmese pythons and Asian bull frogs go on to destroy and displace native species that are ill-equipped to defend themselves against the foreign invaders.

This year, the focus of the meeting was on fish and reptile leathers used for luxury goods. But several other species were being reviewed for the impacts of trade, including:

• Scaphiophryne gottlebei, an endangered native frog from Madagascar;
• Cryptophyllates azureiventris, an endangered frog from Peru;
• Mantella species, some endangered and some critically endangered frogs, native to Madagascar and over-exploited for the international pet trade;
• Dendrobates pumilio from Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama.

These species are in decline and threatened by international trade, but no course of action has yet been decided on how to best protect them.

Perhaps the biggest news of the week, however, was a decision to expedite the review of African lion populations. Kenya volunteered to lead that effort, which is very promising since the Kenyan government has so far done the most to protect their dwindling populations of lions. Many other African nations are still struggling to combat poaching, poisoning and unsustainable hunting of lions within their borders. Scientists estimate there are fewer than 40,000 African lions remaining, maybe as few as 23,000, so taking swift action is absolutely necessary to saving the species from extinction.

You can read daily meeting reports from Geneva here, including this summary report.

Click here to read more about Defenders’ efforts to protect African lions.

Read more about lions on Defenders blog.

Zebras migrate through Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.

In February, we told you about the Tanzanian government’s plans to build a 300-mile highway through the northern part of Africa’s Serengeti National Park that would bisect the “Great Migration”– considered one of the greatest natural wonders of the world. Every year, millions of wildebeest, zebra, elephants, rhinos and gazelles run with predators like cheetahs and lions across the vast landscape, instinctively searching for water. A road through the park would have devastated wildlife populations and surely put an end to the Great Migration forever.

A highway through the Serengeti would fragment habitat, obstruct migration routes, invite invasive species and disease, and cause countless vehicle collisions with wildlife. Without access to water during the dry season, the huge herds would dwindle to a fraction of their current size. Population calculations show that the number of wildebeest would plummet from 1.3 million animals to about 200,000–less than a quarter of the species’ current population.

An acacia tree at dusk under the Serengeti sky.

Slicing through the pristine and remote northwestern area of the park, the highway would also welcome poachers, gangs and unauthorized settlements and farming. Without constant oversight and law enforcement, poachers and gangs would use the highway as a drive-through to slaughter rare wildlife like the highly endangered black rhinos.

But we received very good news: Tanzania canceled plans to build the road through the park! According to a statement from the Tanzanian Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, “The State Party confirms that the proposed road will not dissect the Serengeti National Park and therefore will not affect the migration and conservation values of the Property.” Plans still exist to pave the road up to the edge of the park and concerns remain for ongoing threats to the Serengeti lands and wildlife, but cancellation of this highway project gives us room to celebrate for now.

Lion cubs relax after lunch.

These days, victories for wildlife are few and far between.  Today, we give our sincere thanks to the people of Tanzania and their forward-thinking leader. Their wise decision to protect the wildlife of Serengeti and the Great Migration is a precious gift to the world.

Asante sana! (Thank you very much in Swahili)

Trisha White

Director, Habitat and Highways Program

Alejandra Goyenechea

Director, International Conservation Program



The extremes just keep coming in the weather world. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) just released precipitation figures for March to May 2011 at the county and state level. What does the information mean? Well, each number on that state map shows where the state’s precipitation this spring fell in relation to the past 117 years of data: 1 means record driest, 117 means record wettest. With 117 years of data, you wouldn’t expect very many states to set a record in a single year, would you? Well this year, ten states did: Texas had its driest year on record, and nine states had their wettest. Three other states had their second-wettest spring ever, and New Mexico had its third-driest spring. Jeff Masters at Weather Underground summed it up nicely, “There’s never been a spring this extreme for combined wet and dry extremes in the U.S. since record keeping began over a century ago.”

And it’s not just here. Britain’s Guardian reports this week that Scotland just finished a record wet may, while parts of England have had spring rainfall totals more at home in the Sahara, amidst a heat wave and drought that extends over much of western Europe. China also experienced a 100-year drought this year, whereas Australia is still recovering from record floods. While La Niña is probably partly to blame, this year’s events are also consistent with the conditions researchers project are coming with climate change.

“There’s never been a spring this extreme for combined wet and dry extremes in the U.S. since record keeping began over a century ago.”

How are policymakers responding to this? Unfortunately, by going to some extremes of their own. Not content to simply avoid addressing the root causes of climate change pollution, some in Congress are now trying to prevent the government from even preparing for and responding to the impacts of climate change.  Earlier this month, the House of Representatives voted to strip funding for climate change preparation from the Department of Homeland Security – that’s the department that includes FEMA, our main federal responders to climate-related disasters, and the Coast Guard. And just last week, they did the same thing to the USDA. You read that right — the Department of Agriculture. Because unprecedented fires, floods, tornadoes, droughts and extreme temperatures couldn’t possibly have any effect on our food supply, could they?

These weather extremes should be treated as the serious and threatening events they are, and should also serve as a warning of what is to come. Our government should be taking steps to prepare us for an uncertain future, instead of pretending it’s all blue skies ahead.

Learn more:

See how Defenders is working to protect wildlife and natural places from the harmful effects of climate change.

Read more about how moves by Congress to eliminate climate change-preparation measures threatens our nation’s security.

The yellow-headed parrot, Amazona oratrix

Defenders’ Mexico program director Juan Carlos Cantu and his colleague Elena Maria Sanchez at Mexican nonprofit organization Teyeliz A. C. were featured in PsittaScene Magazine, a quarterly publication of the World Parrot Trust, for their groundbreaking work to stop the illegal parrot trade. Through a multi-year campaign that incorporated both advocacy and public outreach, Defenders and Teyeliz have helped to drastically increase the number of reports of illegal trafficking while the overall number of animals seized has dropped significantly. Taken together, these data show that there is greater awareness of the problem and fewer parrots being illegally traded.

Click here to read the full story.

In 2007 Defenders of Wildlife and Teyeliz A.C. released a comprehensive report on the illegal parrot trade which estimated that roughly 65,000 to 78,500 parrots and macaws are unlawfully captured annually. About 50,000 of them die from stress, disease, rough handling, crushing, asphyxiation or dehydration during capture and transport before reaching the consumer. In response to this crisis, Mexico placed a ban on trapping and trade of wild parrots in October of 2008 – and it’s working!

Learn more about the illegal parrot trade in Mexico.

Note to self: Always attend conferences held at castles. (Photo courtesy of Alejandra Goyenechea)

Protecting marine species

Defenders International program expert Alejandra Goyenechea is always on the move. This past weekend she traveled to Victoria, Canada (the capital of British Columbia) to attend the 2^nd International Marine Conservation Congress hosted by the Society for Conservation Biology, Marine Section.

The purpose of the conference was to address ongoing challenges to marine species conservation, especially those encountered last year during the climate change summit in Cancun, which failed to produce a binding long-term strategy for reducing global greenhouse gas emissions.

One major barrier to marine conservation and creating sustainable fisheries is finding reliable data. Many nations don’t report catch data, including small island countries that depend almost entirely on fishing for food. Improving data collection and establishing a clear baseline for fisheries will be essential to providing ongoing food security and conserving marine species.

Butch Dick from Canada's Songhees Nation delivers the opening address.

Other issues of concern include shark-finning, which takes place around the world and often goes under-reported or unreported altogether. Developing nations also lack vital resources to begin monitoring and managing marine species. Despite the trend toward establishment of large scale marine protected areas, it is imperative that we accelerate our progress in protecting areas of the high seas that are severely underrepresented.

While at the conference Alejandra participated in a focus group session titled, “Integrating science and policy: how scientists can help CITES advance marine conservation”. The group examined case studies that demonstrate how CITES can advance the conservation of traded marine species and how scientists can collaborate with CITES to ensure it achieves its stated goals. Alejandra also attended a debate on the effectiveness of international treaties for international conservation, which included a public discussion of ways to improve the accountability of signatory parties.

Climate change in the Americas

Last Friday, Alejandra was joined by Defenders climate change scientist Astrid Caldas for a lecture here in Washington, D.C. on Climate Change in the Americas at the Organization of American States. The keynote speaker was Christiana Figueres, head of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The main objective of this encounter was to give recommendations on what the Americas can and should do to combat climate change. We all realize, and governments are rapidly accepting, that every nation will suffer from climate change in one way or another. Climate change could be mitigated, but governments need to act quickly to sharply reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

“Climate change does not cause anything, it intensifies everything.” — Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of UNFCCC

During her presentation, Figueres reminded the audience that the U. S. Department of Defense has already recognized that climate change is a threat to its security. Ms. Figueres emphasized the following small steps for governments in the Americas to adopt for facing climate change, and to meet the 2⁰C maximum increase in the temperature of the planet by 2050.

• Promote sustainable development in adaptation and mitigation
• Implement the resolutions to reduce carbon emissions developed during the last Convention of Parties (COP) meeting in Cancun, Mexico, in December 2010. All countries that attended the COP meeting in Cancun pledged to reduce carbon emissions and must follow through on their commitments.
• Support climate change adaptation in developing countries and push for technological innovation.

Coastal mangrove forests buffer ocean waves with strong root networks that extend above and below the tide.

In addition, Ms. Figueres highlighted the importance of saving mangroves in Mexico to mitigate climate change.  Defenders Mexico office has been fighting hard to protect the vanishing mangrove forest from development and earlier this year helped secure stronger protections for four different species of coastal mangroves.

Figueres also touted plans to implement the “REDD+” program to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, which now includes conservation, sustainable forest management, and the enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

Finally, the presentation closed by reminding us that no country can confront climate change by itself, and that cooperation and collaboration among countries is vital. The Americas need to use the opportunity provided by the negotiations in Cancun, Mexico, to further efforts in mitigating and adapting to climate change.