Stalking the Wild Coqui

posted in: June 2003 | 0

Kim Tavares of the state Department of Agriculture has tips for homeowners who want to rid themselves of a handful of noisy coqui.

“Take your Ziploc bag and flashlight,” she says. “Start even before it gets dark if the frog is making noise. The frogs hide in the leaf litter under plants during the day and jump into plants as it gets cooler. They’re probably at eye level early in the evening. As the night progresses, they get higher and higher in the trees.”

“If you hear just one frog, go towards the sound. When you think you’re close to it, take a clockwise walk around the bush and listen for the frog again. Sometimes the frog is actually further away than you think. By moving around the bush, you should be able to hear the frog from a different angle and be able to judge whether you’re getting close.”

When you hone in on the right tree or shrub, she says, you’ll know it by the sound – an ear-piercing shriek. Then, she says, “you have to figure out how high up it is.” Stepping up a foot or two can help you tell where the sound is coming from. Once you’ve pinned down the sound, “just move in with your flashlight. Try not to move the vegetation too much. The frog will jump off if you move the branch he’s on.”

Above all, Tavares counsels patience. “It may take an hour or more for a single frog. The frog won’t continually make noise.”

For industrial-strength densities of coqui, the Department of Agriculture in Hilo offers industrial-strength solutions. It recently purchased three 100-gallon sprayers that it will lend to homeowners or neighborhood associations. (Pickup truck and citric acid are not included.)

— Patricia Tummons

Volume 13, Number 12 June 2003

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