Why you need to stop eating mountain chicken?

Found on the islands of Dominica and Montserrat, Mountain chicken is a local delicacy. Many think of it as a breed of chicken, but it is not a chicken, but the world's most giant frog that tastes likes one. But, now, the frog is an endangered species. With decades of overhunting and loss of habitat caused by volcanic eruptions in Montserrat, the population of mountain chickens started to diminish. It is already extinct in Guadeloupe, Antigua and other Caribbean islands where it used to live. Mountain Chicken also used to be the national dish in Dominica. [caption id="attachment_37401" align="aligncenter" width="320"] Mountain Chicken served in a plate.[/caption] In 2002, a fungal infection named "Chytrid" killed the significant population of Mountain Chicken in Dominica. The condition also spread across Montserrat in 2009 and wiped more than 80% of the mountain chicken population. But, the government acted swiftly, and some of the frogs were rescued and brought into bio-secure captive breeding programmes in European zoos.

Chytrid Fungus is an infection that stays on the frog's skin and slowly impacts the heart, resulting in a stroke leading to death. The entire population across the two islands decreased by 85% collectively. It is now barely seen around. But, the hunters still find ways to kill them down.

The locals need to preserve the giant species of the frog by not consuming it. Even though mountain chicken tastes the same as regular chicken, some people invest hours in hunting down the giant frog for food.

Hundreds of scientists from across the world are working to safeguard the frog, which is now on the verge of extinction. Now, locals need to come together to rescue the amphibian, who had already been under threats of several fungal infections.

People will get thousands of other options to eat, but once the mountain chicken is endangered, there is no way to get it back. It is high time that everyone stops eating it and start saving the amphibian.