Mountain Coquí

The mountain coquí is a tiny tree frog from Puerto Rico. In Spanish people call it the coquí de la montaña, which means mountain coquí. Its name comes from the sound it makes at night: co-quí, co-quí. Out of all the coquí frogs, only two actually say that sound, and this is one of them. Look closely and you may spot a pale half-moon mark above its eyes and dark brown spots on its belly.

The mountain coquí is a small frog that lives only in Puerto Rico, where families know it as the coquí de la montaña. Coquís are famous for their nighttime chorus, but here is a surprise: out of the many coquí species, only two actually produce the clear two-note co-quí call, and the mountain coquí is one of them. You can recognize it by a pale half-moon marking above its eyes and dark brown spots on its belly. It is also called the forest coquí or upland coquí, because it makes its home up in cool, wet mountain forests rather than in town.

This frog lives in the mountains of Puerto Rico, not on dry flat land. You can find it in the Sierra de Luquillo in the northeast, the mountains that include El Yunque, and in the Cordillera Central, the chain of peaks down the island's middle. It likes moist, shady forest above about 180 meters high. It hides in shrubs, palms, and bromeliad plants, and tucks under rocks, roots, and leaf litter where the air stays cool and damp.

The mountain coquí is a highland frog. It lives in the Sierra de Luquillo in northeastern Puerto Rico, the mountain range that includes El Yunque, and along the Cordillera Central, the rugged spine of peaks that runs through the island's center. It prefers moist tropical forest at elevations above roughly 180 meters, where mist and rain keep everything damp. During the day it shelters in shrubs, palms, herbaceous plants, and bromeliads (plants that hold pools of water), or tucks beneath rocks, trunks, roots, and leaf litter. Sadly, it has likely disappeared from the western part of the Cordillera Central, west of Cayey.

The mountain coquí is endangered, which means it could disappear forever if we do not help. Its numbers have dropped a lot across the places it lives. A frog this small needs cool, wet mountain forest to survive, so protecting those forests matters. Scientists also raise some of these frogs safely in captivity, a backup plan called captive breeding, so the species has a better chance to keep going. With care, this little singer can keep calling in the night.

The mountain coquí is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a high risk of dying out. Its populations have undergone considerable declines throughout its range, and it has likely vanished from some western mountains where it once lived. A frog this small depends on cool, moist, shady forest, so keeping those mountain habitats healthy and protected is one of the most important ways to help it. Scientists also work on captive breeding, raising frogs in safe, controlled conditions as a safety net for the species. Every protected forest and every research effort gives this tiny singer a better chance to keep filling Puerto Rico's nights with its co-quí call.