The War the Cravers *SHOULD* be Fighting

[Team2K]

Biologist gathering money to wage war on frogs

A military-style campaign is shaping up for a spring offensive against invasive and voracious American bullfrogs.

The first assault will be a "control corridor" stretching about 10 kilometres through the suburbs from Goldstream Park to Esquimalt Lagoon.

Workers wearing hip waders and armed with electroshock devices would stun the large frogs, then scoop them out in nets, while setting traps to take the smaller tadpoles. The frogs would probably be killed humanely by freezing, said consulting biologist Stan Orchard, an expert in the amphibians who is promoting the idea.

The frogs have been entrenched in Elk and Beaver lakes for about 20 years, but in recent years they have been migrating west. They're now in Thetis, Florence and Langford lakes as well as smaller ponds.

The next stop could be the Greater Victoria watershed which starts on Langford's west side, two kilometres from Langford Lake. The frogs carry a host of parasites, some of them known to transfer to humans, Orchard said, and could create water-quality problems.

They are "absolutely voracious" predators and are altering the ecosystems of local lakes.

Orchard spoke to Langford's parks and recreation committee this week and convinced councillors to vote $5,000 toward the attack.

The big frogs could be eradicated if an organized multi-year campaign is mounted, he said in an interview.

The campaign would "hit these emerging populations very hard" starting in May, when warmer spring weather revives the frogs. Orchard said the corridor is a manageable size. "We can remove the frogs as fast as they invade."

The frog-control plan would work back from the perimeter towards the population centres in Beaver and Elk lakes, he said.

With sponsorship by the Veins of Life Society, responsible for several waterway cleanup projects in the Victoria area, Orchard is trying to raise $50,000 for the bullfrog battle.

[.glib]

I've got an image of a guy with a ghostbusters gun/pack except wearing waders in mind.

[sanrensho]

Damn, I'm thinking there will be some good eats over in Victoria.

A big plate of Southern fried bullfrog legs or buffalo bullfrog legs sounds mighty appetizing.

Pass the hot sauce, please!