Stopping the Silent Invasion
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What's This?


Coqui frog (Eleutherodactylus coqui)

Order: Anura

All frogs in the order Anura are Hawaii State Injurious Species. It is prohibited to release Injurious Species into the wild; transport them to islands or locations within the State where they are not already established; or export outside the State.

Description:

  • Small, nocturnal (night-active) frog about the size of a quarter, up to two inches in length
  • Usually brown or gray-brown, may have a lighter stripe down its back
  • Male's mating call all is a two-note, high-pitched "co-qui" (pronounced ko-kee)
  • Native to Puerto Rico, accidentally introduced to Hawaii hidden in plants around or before 1988

Harm:

  • No natural predators to keep populations in check (and no natural competitors), populations have reached 55,000 frogs per hectare in some Hawaii populations (24,000 frogs per hectare in Puerto Rico)
  • Eat huge quantities of insects, removing insects from forest floor to treetops.
  • Loss of insect services such as pollination
  • Disrupt the balance of vulnerable native ecosystems
  • Potential food source for snakes if they were to arrive
  • Loud, incessant and annoying call from dusk until dawn
  • Adverse economic impacts on tourism
  • Decreased export plant sales
  • Disclosure requirement for real estate transactions, has resulted in decreased property values in some locations

In Hawaii:

  • Kauai: One known population to date. Efforts are underway by KISC and partner agencies to eradicate coqui from Kauai and to quickly detect and control new individuals or populations.
  • Oahu: The island's only wild land population was located in Wahiawa and had over 100 calling frogs. After two summers of systematic control work, the area is now quiet. Monitoring and control work will continue until surveys show the area is coqui-free. Frogs are still found at nurseries and the owners are cooperating with the Oahu coqui Frog Working Group to remove them.
  • Maui: Thirteen populations in/around nurseries and hotels, residential areas and several large natural area populations. MISC has a full-time crew that spends a majority of their time clearing habitat and controlling coqui frogs within Maui's populations.
  • Molokai: There are currently no populations of coqui on Molokai. MoMISC works to educate community members to aid in early detection, which succeeded in 2002 when a lone calling coqui was reported and subsequently captured by MoMISC.
  • Big Island: From reports (verified and unverified), it is estimated that there are more than 300 sites where coqui are present in various numbers. Property owners should control frogs where possible. BIISC will attempt control in priority areas (high natural resource value and limited/eradicable frog population).

For more information, see:

© 2008 Hawaii Invasive Species Partnership