The Newport Aquarium in Newport, Kentucky, is celebrating frogs — warts and all. Frog Bog, running through 2009, features 30 different kinds of frogs, plus interactive experiences highlighting different senses and replicating frog habitats. It is a fitting tribute in the “Year of the Frog,” so designated by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums because 2008 is a leap year.
Interactive exhibits include climbable musical frog replicas that “sing” at the push of a button, and a Frogger-type video game with a pad you jump on to help Frog get to the other side of the road. Hidden within a wooden “frog habitat” is a giant climbing structure with tunnels, tubes and a slide so kids can stretch their legs and do some leaping of their own.
But the frogs are the headliners. There’s the carnivorous, sticky-tongued Colorado River toad; the charismatic red-eyed tree frog; the hardy and ornate horned frog; the tomato frog — as colorful and attractive as its name implies; the Oriental fire-bellied toad that flashes brilliant orange and red warning spots on its belly when threatened; and the Surinam toad, aquatic its entire life with the female protecting her eggs by keeping them in little pockets on her back.
Besides Frog Bog, Newport Aquarium has dozens of exhibits encompassing thousands of animals from around the world — sharks, alligators, jellyfish, piranhas, penguins, the always-engaging otters and more — in 14 galleries and 1 million gallons of water. Interactive activities include touching a shark and petting a penguin, plus a theater that presents an aquatic-themed film and dive shows.