COQUI CONTROL - My report

[Thunderfoot]

see how excited I am....,I can't even type without mistakes...LOL

[PunaLeigh]

Thanks to all of you for the great ideas and proposals.

@AkoniV et al:

I think the coqui control thing is a site specific one: terrain, size, neighbors and your determination to battle them for the rest of your life

For instance, if your land is flat-ish and has a clear borderline, then I think I would put up a quality fabric/plastic (Rudy's Shade)fence around the whole works, or at least on the jungle sides. These fences have been tried and work well unless you have wind exposue, wild pigs or packs of kids and dogs racing around there. They can be very short, 2 1/2-feet tall with an inverted curled top edge. I will see if I can find the link to this…. Here is one: http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/coqui/PhysicalBarriers.asp

From the beginning I thought genetics or biological means was the way to go… tweak something in the male or female coqui that gets passed to the little froglets that makes them infertile. It’s done in insects and even fish, so why not frogs? (For one opposed to genetically modified seeds and plants I am surprised to see myself write that!)

Anyway, there is a large international meeting on just the coqui coming up next May in Kona. Genetics is one of the four topics on the agenda. Cost $ to go. I can’t find a link to that but it was announced on the local news this last week.

Aloha & good luck

[PunaLeigh]

Hehe--- I met a guy from Eden Rock, Ralph, while buying that Makita leaf-blower at Home Depot. Ralph was buying one too, and for the same reasons .....

Anyway, there was some mention about why that meeting was being held in Kona and not Hilo, something about accommodations I think...

Yes, if you have coqui on your doorstep now, you will need earplugs by this time next year.

I saw the cat-killing-coqui post... so we need little cat-houses with cats all along or property lines it seems....

[KeithLee]

Yep..Ralph lives right down the road from us if he's that guy...lol.

Ok I can see the accommodations thing but it felt good to get a little dig in...lol

Man who let me out of my box...I shall cut this forum some slack for a while.

And look I have said almost 300 things on here...I should go back and review for continuity

Edited by - akoniv on 10/04/2007 20:16:12

Edited by - akoniv on 10/04/2007 20:16:49

[PunaLeigh]

Akoni et al...

Here is a link to the Hawaii Tribune article on the world conference on coqui that I was mentioning. It will be held in February at Kona:
<b>Coqui trouble spawns meeting</b>
Tuesday, September 25, 2007 9:03 AM HST
<b>World conference to control frogs slated for the Big Island</b>
http://www.hawaiitribune-herald.com/arti...ocal02.txt

You will have to have or create an access account though.

Here are a few excerpts:

“… the goal is to see if there's a potential to control the frogs that have spread to each district.”

“The First International Conference on the Coqui Frog is slated to be held Feb. 7-9 at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort and Spa. East Hawaii locations were deemed to be too small for the anticipated 150 attendees, so the resort was chosen because it worked well for past conferences…”

“Conference topics will include amphibian ecology, physiology, genetics, population dynamics and habitat.

“It will be the first conference of its kind in the world”

The conference is officially being presented by the county's Coqui Frog Working Group, whose members include the state Department of Agriculture, the University of Hawaii at Hilo's Biology Department, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the private Hawaii Island Economic Development Board.”

“Attendees will be charged $125 each for the three-day conference or $75 apiece to attend just one day … People seeking help controlling coqui frogs can call Shiroma at 961-8065. Inquiries about borrowing a sprayer from the USDA should be directed to 933-6955. Additional information concerning the conference is available at http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/coqui/conf08.asp.

[ericlp]

Hmmm...

Do you think Kona will have a Coqui problem? I thought these frogs only lived in rain forest where it rains a lot?

Sigh...

[Lee G]

Seems silly to have the conference in Kona, They have almost no frogs. Should have at Lava tree state park at night.

[mella l]

$75 a day for a conference? How does that work. Is this an industry sponsored conference that requires payment to cover location costs and amenities and put a little in the till?

Or is the a state/county conference paid for by tax dollars. I'm must be missing something here. Maybe because of the venue people need to pay for admittance?

Oh yes does Kona have a coqui problem?

So people interested in the conference and having a coqui problem, ie the East side residents get to travel 2 1/2 hours to attend, and rent rooms to stay over night at least 2 nights.

I am curious what the turnout will be for this conference and if anyone attends, would you give us a synopsis of the event?

mella l

Edited by - mella l on 10/07/2007 07:04:21

[Kelena]

Kona doesn't have the coqui problem the Eastside does, but there are frogs over there. This has been discussed on the forum on that side. I imagine the conference is being held over there for logistical reasons, but I DO think it should be held there. Westsiders should not be complacent about the frog. This should provide some visibility for the issue over there.

Ideally, the conference would be held in Princeville, on Kaua'i, or on Maui. The coqui was ignored because it got a "toe"-hold in the most neglected district in Hawai'i, and it was perceived that it did not harm economic interests (based on my experience, I can say that perception is probably wrong -- I chose not to buy where the coqui were prevalent). We need others to understand this frog can go anywhere, and will, with the Superferry. You cannot stop the spread of coquis. They will like some places better than others but are suited for the windward side of any island and could thrive beyond that as well.

So, let's have as many conferences as we can in places that are not directly affected.....as of yet. And let them know what's coming. I am the Prince of Powerpoint, so I would start the conference with an audio clip of 2,000 coquis at 20 paces, at actual volume. I would play it for about five minutes before I even said a word. Just long enough for people to get slightly uncomfortable.

That is what it will take: for those elsewhere in the islands to get slightly uncomfortable and concerned that the coqui may be headed in their general direction....and may affect their pocketbook.

[janeadams]

A bit of info about the conference...

1) Held in Waikoloa because of facility size for a conference of this type.

2) One of the goals is to increase attention to the problem.

3) Big island Assoc. of Nurserymen is sending Board Member Jamie Runnells of PlantIt Hawaii as our reprresentative. She has focused on invasive species issues for many years, and is very knowledgeable.

4) When we hear Jamie's report from the conference, I'd be very happy to post a synopsis to Punaweb.


Jane