From Daijiworld's special correspondent (NR/MB)

Panaji, Jun 21: As the monsoon sets in, Goa has an additional delicacy added to its restaurant menus – the Jumping chicken.

Amidst futile attempts by Goa's forest department, frog poaching and serving them as a culinary delicacy remains an adventure for many who venture out in the dark to catch these jumping creatures.

The fertile paddy fields which get inundated with water in monsoon season are a good breeding ground for frogs. ``It's a seasonal feature…. There are people who earn few bucks by selling frogs,'' a forest department official here said.

A frog dish, the jumping chicken which tastes like a chicken, is an added feature these days as many tourists inquire about the dish.

Prominently the eateries dotting the coastal villages in south Goa serve frog meat. Also, many of the Catholic families savor this seasonal delicacy during monsoons.

Traditionally frog-catching is a hobby for many. When it rains, bunch of youth usually armed with a torch lights and buckets venture into the paddy field to track down the frogs that are traceable with their crocking sound.

While the hunting does not require much skill, the catch fetches good price ranging from Rs 10 a frog onwards. For a plate of fried jumping chicken the cost is around Rs 30 to Rs 50, depending on its availability.

Though many catch frogs as an adventure, there are few who get lured into it to make some quick bucks. Not a huge sum; but as pocket money.

The activity, however, is banned under Wildlife Protection Act.

The forest department, which lacks the infrastructure to curb frog-poaching, finds itself in a helpless situation. Except for an annual notice in the newspapers warning people against serving frog meat or catching frog, nothing really is done at the ground level.

''Catching, killing and selling of frogs or serving frog meat in eating places contravenes the provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 attracting stringent punishment with fine and imprisonment,'' forest department officials have stated in their recent notice.

Terming frog poaching as an ecological crime, the department officials pointed out that the activity affects the ecological balance of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

According to the forest department the increasing incidence of snake encroachment in human habitations and settlement areas, may also be attributed to the dwindling population of frogs in the wild.

Giving a `human touch' to their warning, the department officials  have stated that  massive toxic recalcitrant residues from agro-chemicals biomagnified in the food chain get accumulated in the fat deposits of frogs, the consumption of which over a period of time could trigger paralytic strokes, cancers, kidney failures and other deformities.

However despite all the above annual warnings, frog catching goes on unabated in this coastal state which gets hordes of special visitors (tourists), flocking here to eat Jumping Chicken.