On the hunt for the elusive coqui frog

Flashlight in mouth, Kona resident Vickie Kibler illuminated a ti plant. Seconds before, she heard “ko-KEE-ko-KEE-ko-KEE” — distinct tones of a male coqui in the area.

After searching the rock wall and bromeliads below, Kibler narrowed the small brown tree frog’s location to the palm-like shrub. With one hand, she bent the woody stem toward her, and with her other hand, slowly began pulling back and carefully inspecting the leaves. Hunting these nocturnal coqui takes time and patience.

Tagging along on this rainy Monday hunt is Ellen Greenbaum, a friend and volunteer who spent her childhood “giggin’ frogs,” spearing them as bait for rattlesnakes, in New Jersey. Greenbaum spots their suspect, about the size of a quarter. “When they look me in the eye, it makes me mad,” she said.

Kibler goes for the swoop from the side. The frog leaps onto her shirt and into the bush. Kibler explained coqui are nimble, capable of quickly jumping through hands or away just when you think you got one. But one benefit is they’re territorial and tend to stay in the same place. Hang around a coqui’s hiding place for a few minutes and it’s bound to appear or be heard again, she added.

Kibler is right. Ten minutes later, the chirping is heard in the same plant. She zeroes in on the frog again, but this time, taking and placing it in a plastic bottle. This was among the dozen coqui caught that night by Kibler, Greenbaum and volunteer Chris Christenson. All the frogs were stored in a freezer for at least 48 hours and then discarded.

Kibler is the founder of Kalaoa Coqui Patrol, a volunteer group started four years ago. At the time, there was a house at the bottom of Loloa Drive that was commonly referred to as “Little Hilo” because it was infested with the frogs, of which the males emitted loud, echoing calls to attract females and fend off others.

Determined to do something about the infestation and prevent this invasive species, native to Puerto Rico, from spreading, Kibler collected donations from 20 neighbors to purchase the needed equipment to be effective. She spent a couple thousand dollars to get an industrial-grade sprayer, a 24-gallon sprayer, and two hand-held modified blowers. These machines are used to dispense baking soda and citric acid.

The collective was supposed to work like this: Homeowners would call Kibler to borrow the equipment when coqui were discovered on their property, use it for treatment, and then return it. Instead, Kibler just gets phone calls and emails daily from those needing coqui removal.

Three days a week for two to three hours in the evening, Kibler scours yards in the Kona Coastview, Wonderview, Highlands and Palisades subdivisions, with property owner permission, voluntarily hand capturing and killing coqui frogs. She does so typically by herself, though some sporadically join her on these coqui hunts. More volunteers are needed and appreciated.

Kibler is often contacted by people who live outside the North Kona areas she’s concentrating on. She tries her best to link them up with other groups leading similar coqui control efforts and direct them to the numerous resources available to tackle the problem on their own. Kibler also encourages them to start their own collective or volunteer with one. Occasionally, she makes presentations to share her knowledge.

The biggest hurdle, Kibler said, is educating the public about the coqui and how destructive they are to the island.

“Our ecosystem is based on checks and balances. Since there are no natural enemies in Hawaii to the coqui frog, there is no way to keep their population in check,” she said. “Without that balance, they are eating important nutrient and pollinating insects at an alarming rate. In some areas, populations may exceed 10,000 frogs per acre, which consume more than 50,000 insects per night. This is an endangerment to native Hawaiian insect populations, including the plant pollinators, and it is causing a direct competition with Hawaii’s native birds. The studies also show that due to their reproduction rate, the coqui may serve as an energy sink in native ecosystems where they serve as an additional food source enhancing population levels of rats and mongoose, thereby increasing predation pressure on native forest birds.”

Another problem, Kibler said, is having a law that no one will enforce and most don’t know about. Any person or organization who transports, harbors or imports with the intent to propagate, sell or release the coqui is in violation of state law and may be charged with a class C felony and subject to a minimum fine of $50,000 and maximum fine of $200,000, plus three years in prison.

Kibler only goes to a property if it’s in her targeted area and she has the owner’s permission. Prior to treating the property or hand catching the frogs, she performs an assessment, which requires visiting the site in the daytime to get the lay of the land and returning in the evening to get a general sense of the frogs’ locations. Depending on the foliage and owner’s preferences, citric acid or baking soda is used. The homeowner is responsible for purchasing and supplying the treatment material wanted. If only hand-catching is wanted, Kibler abides, but it means the owner or residents will see her more. The most frogs she’s caught in one night is 100.

Since Kalaoa Coqui Patrol’s inception, Kibler has helped roughly 25 homes, including the one that inspired the entire effort. Kibler said it was “insane” and “really overwhelming” the first time she walked around the house at the bottom of Loloa Drive. “The noise was incredible, and you understood why most people thought getting rid of the coqui was going to be an impossible task,” she added.

Kibler initially spent 30 days straight treating that property and then continued the removal effort with regular visits. Within a year, the coqui were gone. She estimated it’s been about a year and a half since that house has needed treatment.

Another testament that this effort is working is Kibler on Monday had to leave the neighborhoods she has been treating to actually go coqui hunting.

“We can get the coqui under control, but it’s going to take all of us doing our part and not simply relying on other people to make it happen,” Kibler said.

For more information or to get involved, email vtravel@hawaiiantel.net.