Srinagar, Oct 23: The native frog species of Kashmir is declining at an alarming rate especially in the urban and semi-urban areas of the valley, warn environmentalists. The research report, Abundance of the Native Frog of Kashmir in the Paddy Field Environment, which appeared in the journal of Centre of Research for Development, University of Kashmir, reveals that native population of frog – Rana cyanophlyctis – is sparsely found in the valley.
The research, done in four different paddy fields and a perennial spring site in northeastern suburbs of Srinagar, found population of native frog to be woefully inadequate. The report has given several reasons for its decline, the major one being the frequent and indiscriminate use of pesticides in paddy fields.
The study highlights that toxins accidently destroy numerous species of frogs every year. The chemical fertilisers used in agriculture and horticulture, contain nitrogen and phosphorous which has negative impact on the growth of these species.
Pesticides and fungicides are extensively used in orchards in the valley. These pesticides find their way into water bodies and paddy fields, which house amphibian habitats. Consequently, Internal and external gills of young tadpoles get exposed to different types of toxins causing their death.
Frogs are carnivorous and feed upon living insects. Pesticides and insecticides used to kill the insects result in the reduction in availability of food resources for frogs and subsequently add to the decrease in their population, the research says.
Environmental factors like habitat loss has been cited as another major cause of decline in frog population. Each year more wetlands and paddy fields are converted to urban and semi-urban developments.
Rapid urbanisation and habitat degradation have taken their toll and over the years numerous native species of frog have been lost, the research says.
The report further asserts that during the last decade, Kashmir valley has been facing a change in the pattern of weather like untimely rains and snow. Temperature fluctuations and erratic rainfall especially during the breeding season of frogs appear to play a direct role in the decline of this amphibian population.
Human actions have resulted in the widespread loss of natural habitats, fragmentation of the remaining habitats, and gross disruption of the numerous intricate natural processes which govern the evolution of these species, the report adds.