The web-footed coqui, stream coqui, Puerto Rican stream frog or Karl's robber frog (''Eleutherodactylus karlschmidti''), is a possibly extinct

Puerto Rica Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places *El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines *Puerto Colombia, Colombia *Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela *Puerto Galera, Orient ...

n frog species in the family

Eleutherodactylidae The Eleutherodactylidae are a family of direct-developing frogs native to northern South America, the Caribbean, and southernmost North America. They are sometimes known under the common name rain frogs. Formerly the subfamily Eleutherodactylina ...

. It was first described by

Chapman Grant Chapman Grant (March 27, 1887 – January 5, 1983) was an American herpetologist, historian, and publisher. He was the last living grandson of United States President Ulysses S. Grant. He was married and had two children, one of whom survived him ...

in 1931, and was named after herpetologist Karl Patterson Schmidt. It is the largest ''Eleutherodactylus'' species of Puerto Rico.

Description

The maximum size is in snout–vent length. The overall appearance is stocky. The head is wider than the body. The eyes are large and protruding. The tympanum is small but distinct. The limbs are strong and relatively short. The fingers and the toes bear large discs. The fingers have no webbing whereas the toes are extensively webbed (the only coquí to do so). Skin is warty dorsally and smooth ventrally. Dorsal coloration consists of green, yellow, and black marbling. A yellow line runs between the eyes. Another yellow line touches the lip and extends backward to the tympanum. A vague transverse band is located at the shoulders and another, more distinct one half-way along the dorsum. The sides and lower part are marbled gray to partly plain gray. Males have bi-lobed

vocal sac The vocal sac is the flexible membrane of skin possessed by most male frogs and toads. The purpose of the vocal sac is usually as an amplification of their mating or advertisement call. The presence or development of the vocal sac is one way ...

. Males advertisement call is loud and sonorous.

Habitat and conservation

''Eleutherodactylus karlschmidti'' is an aquatic species that occurs in mountain streams at elevations of above sea level. It prefers rocky torrents in closed mesic forests. Males call from boulders, banks, and waterfalls. Development is direct (i.e., there is no free-living larval stage). This species was once abundant in eastern Puerto Rico as well as in the western mountains. Its former range included the

El Yunque 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 ...

. However, the latest record is from 1988, possibly even earlier, despite repeated surveys. It is almost certainly extinct. The likely reason is a combination of the fungal disease

chytridiomycosis Chytridiomycosis ( ) is an infectious disease in amphibians, caused by the chytrid fungi '' Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis'' and '' Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans''. Chytridiomycosis has been linked to dramatic population declines or extinc ...

and climate change. Also invasive predators might have played a role.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q309103 karlschmidti Amphibians of Puerto Rico Endemic fauna of Puerto Rico Extinct animals of the United States Amphibians described in 1931 Taxa named by Chapman Grant

Description

Habitat and conservation

See also

References