The whistling coquí, Cochran's treefrog, or Cochran's robber frog (''Eleutherodactylus cochranae'') is a species of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

native to

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

, the US Virgin Islands, and the

British Virgin Islands ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = Territorial song , song = "Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands" , image_map = File:British Virgin Islands on the globe (Americas centered).svg , map_caption = , mapsize = 290px , image_map2 = Brit ...

. This

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

insectivore A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects. The first vertebrate insectivores wer ...

is also referred to as the ''coquí pitito'' in Puerto Rico. Their distinctive song is a single, rising whistle, which is repeated and followed by three clicking sounds.

Description

The whistling coqui measures between 0.6 and 0.7 inches, but the females can grow to 0.9 in long. Their physical coloration is gray, tan, or gray-brown. Their dorsa have a unique pattern of fine lines that resemble two reverse parenthesis . Their venters are white, gray, or creamy yellow. Their legs are brown with small toe pads, and they have dark, fine lines on the midline of their snouts. Their throats and thighs are distinctive for their speckled, small brown spots. See references for picture website.

Distribution and habitat

The whistling coqui is usually found sleeping in the refuge of tree bromeliads (where it also lays its eggs) and coconut husk piles during the day. Several inhabit the southwest flank of the

Luquillo Mountains The Sierra Luquillo ( Spanish: ''Sierra de Luquillo'') is a mountain range located in the northeastern part of Puerto Rico. Also known as the Luquillo Mountains, these are steep-sided, densely-forested mountains rising to elevations of around , th ...

and Guanica’s dry forest in Puerto Rico, as well as humid areas of Puerto Rico such as

Utuado Utuado () is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the central mountainous region of the island known as the '' Cordillera Central''. It is located north of Adjuntas and Ponce; south of Hatillo and Arecibo; east of Lares; and west ...

, Cayey, and the

Caribbean National Forest El Yunque National Forest ( es, Bosque Nacional El Yunque), formerly known as the Caribbean National Forest (or ''Bosque Nacional del Caribe''), is a forest located in northeastern Puerto Rico. It is the only tropical rainforest in the United Sta ...

. Overall, they range from the Puerto Rican islands (except Mona and Monito) to St. John, St. Thomas, and the British Virgin Islands (except Anegada). The whistling coqui is found in semiarid, wooded areas, such as the dry forest of Guánica and the humid areas of Utuado, Cayey, and Luquillo. They find and use trees, such as bromeliad plants, and

leaf litter Plant litter (also leaf litter, tree litter, soil litter, litterfall or duff) is dead plant material (such as leaves, bark, needles, twigs, and cladodes) that have fallen to the ground. This detritus or dead organic material and its constituent ...

to hide from predators during the day. Depending on their area, they are found as high as three feet from the ground in trees.

Reproduction

Males use their songs as mating calls from about three feet from the ground in trees, and are usually heard before dusk and after dawn. Their reproduction, as most of the family Eleutherodactylidae, skips the tadpole phase. Their eggs are laid in humid areas, and the froglets emerge and continue their lives.

References

*http://cars.er.usgs.gov/herps/Frogs_and_Toads/E_cochranae/e_cochranae.html {{Taxonbar, from=Q286193 Eleutherodactylus Fauna of the British Virgin Islands Amphibians of Puerto Rico Amphibians of the United States Virgin Islands Amphibians described in 1932 Taxa named by Chapman Grant