Raucous Frogs That Brought Down Property Values in Hawaii Move to L.A.

Coqui frogs are kind of adorable, if you’re into amphibians. But if you’ve ever visited Hawaii, where the two-inch-long frogs are numerous, you’ve probably heard the sound that drives locals crazy: “Ko-kee,” their high-pitched mating call. From dusk to dawn, male frogs trill at 90 decibels, roughly the sound of a power mower.

Now Los Angeles is getting its own introduction to these chirp-tastic neighbors. On a frog-finding expedition with reporter Jason Goldman, Greg Pauly, curator of herpetology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, found nearly 100 coquis hiding out in an L.A. County wholesale nursery. It wasn’t a surprise; L.A. has a major port, and is home to countless other invasive species. But given Hawaii’s experience, the influx might spell sleepless nights for L.A. residents.