Monday, June 17, 2013

The Crapaud Story

I wrote this poem in support of activities by the Dominican Mountain Chicken Project which is located very close to my workplace in the Botanic Gardens. This project is designed to breed the endangered Crapaud, which has a lot of historic and gastronomic significance for Dominica and Dominicans.

The amphibian is affected by a chytrid fungus that significantly reduced its population in the forests of Dominica. It's population has also been diminished in Montserrat as well, which is a neighbouring island. You can read about my previous exploits as it relates to hunting crickets for the frog (it eats mainly insects) in an earlier blog submission cricket, cricket, cricket.

I've only eaten Mountain Chicken once but i really don't want to see it disappear from our island. Help the project by supporting its activities, link them through Facebook (see hyperlink above).

Check out the poem below and let me know if you like it:


If the photo is difficult to read, then the poem is also posted below:

The Crapaud Story
By Delroy N. Williams

Dey say Crapaud smoke my pipe
But me doh hear no Crapaud last night
An long I doh eat no Crapaud in a stew,
I doh even hear anybody talking bout dat frog.
Someting must definitely be wrong.
It was once our national emblem
Now reduced to the crannies of de “Station.”
If somebody doh talk den nobody go listen
So I glad dat Machel an dem doin someting
Cuz de Crapaud is Dominica’s blessing.
Dat fungus come out from nowhere
An got us forgettin Crapaud is our heritage
We cyah just give up, dat would leave Crapaud in a sad state
De Chytrid ting is very dangerous
Been around for just over a decade
Got Crapaud in decadence
From our forests an even our minds
Look we even searching for a new national dish
Want to remove Crapaud from its podium of pride
An reduce it to jus hindsight
But Crapaud stronger dan we think
An wit a likle help from Forestry
Dat frog go leap back unto its pedestal
We go hear Crapaud sing again
We go hear Crapaud after a shower of rain
An den we go really understand
Dat Crapaud is wat makes Dominica a blessed island

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