Eleutherodactylus locustus
| Kingdom |
Phylum |
Class |
Order |
Family |
| ANIMALIA |
CHORDATA |
AMPHIBIA |
ANURA |
ELEUTHERODACTYLIDAE |
| Scientific Name: |
Eleutherodactylus locustus |
| Species Authority: |
Schmidt, 1920 |
Common Name/s:
| English |
– |
Locust Coqui |
| Spanish |
– |
Coqui Martillito |
|
| Synonym/s: |
Eleutherodactylus cramptoni (Schmidt, 1920)
|
Assessment Information
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| Red List Category & Criteria: |
Critically Endangered
A4ae
ver 3.1
|
| Year Published: |
2008 |
| Assessor/s: |
Blair Hedges, Neftalí Rios-López |
| Reviewer/s: |
Ariadne Angulo and Simon Stuart |
Justification:
Listed as Critically Endangered because of an observed and projected population decline of greater than 80% over a ten year period including the past and the future, perhaps due to human disturbances, climate change and/or chytridiomycosis.
|
| History: |
| 2004 |
– |
Critically Endangered
|
|
Geographic Range
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Population
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| Population: |
There has been an unexplained major decline in abundance in the last two decades, even in relatively well-protected forests (such as El Yunque, see Burrowes et al. 2004), and some populations have been entirely extirpated.
|
| Population Trend: |
Decreasing
|
Habitat and Ecology
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| Habitat and Ecology: |
It is a terrestrial species occurring in mesic broadleaf forest where the males call from low vegetation. Eggs are laid on the ground, and it breeds by direct development.
|
| Systems: |
Terrestrial |
| Major Threat(s): |
In the past, extensive deforestation took place over much of Puerto Rico due to agricultural expansion and wood-cutting; current disturbances include tourism and infrastructure development for tourism and radio communication facilities. As a high-altitude species, it might also be susceptible to climate change and/or chytridiomycosis. Rats and mongooses have also been suggested as potential threats (as invasive predators), although literature on this subject is equivocal (Hedges 1993, and Thurley and Bell 1994, support the notion that these introduced species comprise threats to amphibian species, while Reagan and Waide 1996, suggest that rats are lesser predators of Eleutherodactylus coqui), and there is currently no consensus regarding the impact that these species may or may not have on amphibian declines in Puerto Rico. Future research efforts directed at investigating the impact of these invasive species on amphibian populations may help to elucidate their relative contribution to amphibian declines.
|
Conservation Actions
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| Conservation Actions: |
The species occurs in the Luquillo National Forest Reserve and the Carite Forest Reserve, which are well-managed protected areas. Further survey work is required to determine the population status of this species and the reasons for its decline in pristine habitat. If disease is shown to be a major threat, then surviving individuals might need to form the basis for the establishment of an ex-situ population.
|
