title: Do frogs really eat cardamom? Understanding the myth of crop damage by amphibians in the Western Ghats, India.
abstract: In the Western Ghats of India, amphibians are culled at cardamom plantations since they are perceived to consume cardamom. To better understand the relationship between amphibians and cardamom, a study was undertaken at these plantations, which harbor numerous threatened and range-restricted amphibians. We undertook questionnaire surveys with 298 respondents at 148 plantations across southern India. Time-activity budget and diet analysis surveys were undertaken to determine whether amphibians really consumed cardamom. The conception that amphibians eat cardamom was found to be widespread especially among small-sized plantations, leading to negative perceptions and a lack of interest in amphibian conservation. The plantation community perceives a substantial economic loss due to amphibians, even though this is non-existent as revealed by our field surveys. These perceptions would lead to a continued intolerance of amphibian presence in plantations. A suitable outreach initiative re-affirming facts and spreading awareness on the positive role of amphibians would need to be conducted to negate this age-old myth.
authors.affiliation: Conservation Research Group, St. Albert's College, Cochin, Kerala, 682018, India. arun.kanagavel@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Arun
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1339-282X
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kanagavel
authors.affiliation: Conservation Research Group, St. Albert's College, Cochin, Kerala, 682018, India.
authors.forename: Sethu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Parvathy
authors.affiliation: Conservation Research Group, St. Albert's College, Cochin, Kerala, 682018, India.
authors.forename: Nithula
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nirmal
authors.affiliation: Conservation Research Group, St. Albert's College, Cochin, Kerala, 682018, India.
authors.forename: Nithin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Divakar
authors.affiliation: Department of Fisheries Resource Management, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS), Cochin, 682506, India.
authors.forename: Rajeev
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Raghavan
mesh_terms: D000663:Amphibians; D000818:Animals; D000069599:Crop Production; D028523:Elettaria; D060434:Herbivory; D007194:India
keywords: Agroforestry; Cardamom plantations; Diet analysis; Frogs; Local perception; Pesticide use