General Information

The Locust Coqui or Coqui Martillito (Eleutherodactylus locustus) is a species of frog

Frog

Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...

 in the Leptodactylidae

Leptodactylidae

Leptodactylidae is a diverse family of frogs that probably diverged from other hyloids during the Cenozoic era, or possibly at the end of the Mesozoic. There are roughly 50 genera, one of which is Eleutherodactylus, the largest vertebrate genus, with over 700 species...

 family. It is endemic to Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

. Its natural habitat

Habitat

* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...

s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest

Forest

A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...

s and subtropical or tropical moist montane

Montane

In biogeography, montane is the highland area located below the subalpine zone. Montane regions generally have cooler temperatures and often have higher rainfall than the adjacent lowland regions, and are frequently home to distinct communities of plants and animals.The term "montane" means "of the...

s. E. locustus has suffered a population decline of more than 80% due to introduced predators and amphibian chytrid disease. Scientists believe that amphibian chytrid may be exacerbated by climate change – warmer temperatures dry moist habitats, causing stress that may lead to greater susceptibility to the disease.

Description

The Locust Coqui is a small species, approximately 0.78 inches (20 millimeters) in snout to vent length. It is brown overall, minutely variegated with lighter brown or cream colors. A pair of externally concave lines is almost always visible on the back, but a variable width line along the vertebrae may or may not be present. The eyes are large and protuberant, and the angles at the side of the snout are rounded and indistinct.

Habits

Like other Eleutherodactylidae, E. locustus does not have inter-digital membranes and so is not well adapted to swimming; instead, it has pads on its toes that allow it to adhere to leaves and branches. The species utilizes internal fertilization - the fertilized eggs undergo direct development. The tadpole stage occurs entirely within the egg, rather than as a free-living larva. Thus, a tiny but fully functional froglet hatches directly from the egg. E. locustus females deposit four to six clutches of about 28 eggs each per year, mostly during the rainy season, with a development period of 26 days. Males guard the eggs to keep them moist and remain in the nest for a few days after they emerge. The voice of E. Locustus is a short whistle, followed by a series of clicks

Habitat

The Locust Coqui is restricted to the interior uplands of eastern Puerto Rico at elevations of 895 to 3,444 feet (273 to 1,050meters) above sea level. A terrestrial species, it occurs in mesic broadleaf subtropical moist lowland or subtropical moist montane forests.

Because there has been an unexplained major decline in the abundance of this species in the last two decades, even in relatively undisturbed forests (such as El Yunque

El Yunque

El Yunque may refer to:Mountains* El Yunque, Puerto Rico** El Yunque National Forest, formerly the Caribbean National Forest* El Yunque, Cuba* El Yunque, highest point on Robinson Crusoe Island, ChileOther...

) this animal is rarely seen. However, there is an easily accessible Forest location that sustains an E. Locustus population. On the fern-covered slope above the Big Tree Nature Trail’s roadside parking lot, the calls of Locust Coquis can be heard beginning in the late afternoon hour, just before sunset.

See also

• Fauna of Puerto Rico
  Fauna of Puerto Rico
  The fauna of Puerto Rico is similar to other island archipelago faunas, with high endemism, and low, skewed taxonomic diversity. Bats are the only extant native terrestrial mammals in Puerto Rico. All other terrestrial mammals in the area were introduced by humans, and include species such as cats,...
  
  
• List of endemic fauna of Puerto Rico
• List of amphibians and reptiles of Puerto Rico

Source

• Hedges, B., Joglar, R. & Thomas, R. 2004. Eleutherodactylus locustus. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 22 July 2007.