Delhi has a frogman

For his path-breaking work,Biju has several awards to his name. Not only did he receive the Sabin Award from IUCN in 2008,but the Sanctuary Wildlife Service Award was also given to him in 2011. Not surprisingly,Delhi University invited him to teach at the Department of Environmental Studies in 2006. Head of Systematics Lab which he established in Delhi University to direct research on amphibians,Biju was studying botany before he developed an interest in amphibians.

Having undertaken research in plant taxonomy for his doctoral thesis,Biju was in the Western Ghats,shooting photos when he came across a species of frogs which he hadn’t seen before. “Photography is my other interest. I stayed in forests for several weeks for my research. While clicking pictures,I found a unique species of frogs. I took those photos to various centres in the country but none of them showed any interest. But when I took the same photos to some international researchers,they were intrigued and said they had never seen that species of frogs before. This is how I got into that area of research,” Biju says.

Around the time Biju began his research on frogs,people used to ask him how many species of frogs existed in the country. “When I told them that there were around 450 species,they would be surprised. They said they didn’t think there would be more than five,” says Biju.

“Nowadays,all developed countries,especially those concentrating on agriculture,are importing large amount of pesticide. If water bodies with frogs come up near farms,there will not be any need to import pesticides. Frogs are the best friends of farmers,” Biju says.

“India has the highest amphibian population. We have identified nearly 500 species of frogs in India,” he says.

Recently,researchers have begun taking an interest in the amphibian. “I’m glad that the younger generation is taking an interest in amphibians. I get requests from at least 10 students for research in that field every year,” he says.