NL·0431Herbarium of the Nature Library
- Name
- Eleutherodactylus coqui
- Family
- Eleutherodactylidae
- Native to
- Puerto Rico; introduced to Hawaii, the US Virgin Islands, Florida and elsewhere
- Habitat
- Tropical rainforest, Montane forest, Gardens, Towns
Common coquí
Eleutherodactylus coqui
Also calledCoquí (Puerto Rican Spanish) · Coqui frog
A tiny frog whose two-note 'ko-KEE' call fills Puerto Rico's nights and has become a national symbol. Its eggs hatch directly into froglets with no tadpole stage. In Hawaii, where it was introduced, it is an invasive pest whose loud choruses cause complaints.
The common coquí, widely known as the coquí, is a species of frog native to Puerto Rico belonging to the family Eleutherodactylidae. The species is named for the loud call the males make at night, which serves two purposes; the "co" serves to repel other males and establish territory while the "quí" serves to attract females. The auditory systems of males and females respond preferentially to different notes of the male call, displaying sex difference in a sensory system. The common coquí is a very important aspect of Puerto Rican culture, and it has become an unofficial territorial symbol of Puerto Rico. Wikipedia
What it can do
- iEggs hatch directly into tiny froglets, with no tadpole or need for standing water
- iiMales guard eggs and keep them moist
- iiiIts call can reach about 90 decibels at half a metre
- ivClimbs using toe pads, with no webbing between its toes
In the field
Field marks
- aSmall brown or grey frog, often with a pale stripe or W-shaped mark
- bLarge toe pads, no webbing
- cLarge eyes
- dLoud two-note call
- Voice
- A loud, two-note 'ko-KEE', the first note lower, repeated through the night
- Not to be confused with
- Puerto Rico has around 16 other Eleutherodactylus species, many of them small and brown, so the common coquí's two-note call is the best way to identify it.
- Where to see it
- El Yunque National Forest and almost anywhere in Puerto Rico at night; Hawaii's Big Island
- When
- Calls year-round, loudest in the wet season
Listen
Looking for field recordings…
Life & habits
- Diet
- Insects, spiders, snails
- Habitat
- Forest, gardens and towns, from sea level to mountains
- Size
- ~3–5 cm
Males call from leaves and tree trunks at dusk to attract females and defend their territory.
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Native range
Puerto Rico; introduced to Hawaii, the US Virgin Islands, Florida and elsewhere
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Eleutherodactylus coqui in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
Marginalia
In Puerto Rico people say 'Soy de aquí como el coquí' ('I'm from here, like the coquí'), and the frog appears in Taíno petroglyphs.
Curiosity
Coquís at higher altitudes in Puerto Rico are larger and have deeper calls than those in the lowlands.
Kinship
Photographs: iNaturalist contributors under the licences shown. Records: GBIF.org. Historical plates: Source Library (CC BY-SA 4.0; originals public domain). Summary text: Nature Library editors and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Medicinal and edibility notes are historical and educational, not advice. iNaturalist taxon 22454.