When Cedrick Fogwan had his first encounter with the goliath frog he was impressed by its mighty proportions.
Growing to the size of a cat, it’s the world’s largest living frog.
Almost like holding a (human) baby, he says, having handled one in a rescue mission.
The Cameroonian conservationist was so captivated he set up a project to fight for the future of the endangered species.
“When I found this species was unique – the biggest one in the world – I said this is something that we cannot easily find elsewhere and I was proud of it,” he says.
“People in the area say they are blessed to have something like that; they attach to it a cultural value.”
Rescued goliath frogImage source, Cedrick Fogwan
Image caption,
Goliath frogs can be as big as a domestic cat, measuring up to 32cm (13in) in length and weighing more than 3.25 kg (7.2lb)
For decades, the goliath frog has been over-hunted for food and the pet trade in Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea.
Its habitat beside rivers and streams is fast being destroyed and the frog is now classified as endangered on the official extinction Red List.
The frog is little-known to science and even in Cameroon many local people are unaware of its value to the ecosystem, such as preying on the insects that damage crops.
Source: bbc.com
