Puerto Rican coquí frogs are loud. Islanders want to keep it that way.
But for one purported tourist, the noise felt more like a nightmare, according to a now-deleted Reddit post from May on the Puerto Rico Travel thread.
The post, titled 'Spray to keep the noisy frogs quiet?', alarmed residents and lovers of the amphibian. In the last month, dozens have voiced their concerns across social media about their fears that visitors to the island appear to want to silence the creature.
On TikTok, videos pleading to leave the coquís alone have millions of views. Some users have urged people not to come to Puerto Rico if they don't like the sound of the coquÍs. Others have joined in the chorus of voices calling on people to protect coquís from possible harm.
Alejandro Ríos-Franceschi, an associate professor of ecology, biodiversity and evolution at the University of Puerto Rico, Ponce Campus, said that before the social media post, he had never heard of people in Puerto Rico attempting to kill coquís. Puerto Rican environmental officials have not weighed in on the online uproar.
However, Ríos-Franceschi isn't surprised by the fears expressed by many locals and environmental enthusiasts online, given how beloved the frog is. On the island, many Puerto Ricans are taught from a young age to care for and appreciate them.
'The coquÍ is not noise — it's a living soundtrack of the Puerto Rican identity,' Ríos-Franceschi said.
There are 17 species of coquís, most of which are endemic to Puerto Rico, according to Ríos-Franceschi. The creatures are tiny, muddy and brown. Males are known for making 'co' sounds to dissuade other males, while the 'qui' sound is meant to attract females.
As a U.S. territory, Puerto Rico is subject to the rules and laws of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, which means anyone who harms a coquÍ could face serious legal trouble. As of 2017, some coquÍs were listed as endangered. But the common coquÍ, which makes the iconic sound, are not endangered.
The frog is also an invasive species in Hawaii, Ríos-Franceschi said. In 2003, The Associated Press reported that state and federal officials were trying to eradicate the Oahu coquÍ frog population, citing the need to control them.
The superstar rapper and singer Bad Bunny, who is from Puerto Rico, has even posted about the creature. Last week, he appeared to allude to the ongoing discussion about them by sharing an Instagram story featuring their croaking in the background of a clipped version of his song 'Lo Que Le Pasó a Hawaii,' which translates to 'What Happened to Hawaii.'
Ríos-Franceschi, who is also a research director for the nonprofit conservation group Proyecto Coqui, said if tourists are actually coming to Puerto Rico and trying to spray the coquí with chemicals, it could enter the groundwater and spread to other creatures, possibly disrupting the entire ecosystem of the island.
To Puerto Ricans, the sound of the frogs, Ríos-Franceschi said, is "melody for our ears, but I can understand that for tourists that are not used to it, it can be bothering.'
'But that doesn't mean that when tourists come here, they have the right to kill them just because they're annoying.'
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