No need to declare a frog as state frog if no one has seen it, says CM; move to declare 'Pathala Thavala' as state frog abandoned

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state has abandoned the move to declare the extremely rare Purple Frog, regionally known as 'Pathala Thavala' as the state frog. The decision was taken in the meeting of the state wildlife board. The recommendation put forward in the meeting was rejected after the Chief Minister took the stand that there is no need to declare the frog as a state frog as not even the members of the wildlife board have not seen it. It was the Chief Wildlife Warden who recommended declaring the Purple frog as the state frog.

The Purple frog spends most of its life underground. It surfaces above only once a year. This frog, also known as pig-nosed frog, can be spotted very rarely in the Western Ghats.