Traveling With Children: Coqui Frog Challengesby Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger 25 Jan 2007 03:22 PM My 2-year-old daughter has evolved into quite the little traveler during her short life. She handles our semi-annual trip to Hawaii, including a 12-hour flight like a champ and fares just as well with the time difference and dramatic change in climate, which is why I was a bit surprised about what transpired during the first night of our most recent trip to the Islands. After 16 hours of standing in security checkpoints at the airport, plane changes, and more than a dozen trips to the restroom (at 35,000 feet over 5 different states) I thought for sure once we got to my parent's home in Hilo my traveling trooper would hit the sack and stay there for at least the next 14 hours. Boy was I wrong. My daughter spent the better part of the night tossing and turning all thanks to a bunch of late night "singers," whose songs proved to be anything but music to my daughter's ears. A band of Coqui frogs had gathered outside my daughter's bedroom window (perhaps to serenade her to sleep) but their visit proved untimely to say the least. Rather than lulling her to la-la land, the frogs prompted a late night study session (a.k.a. my daughter snuggled up next to me on the couch with the "C" encyclopedia learning about a bunch of tropical tree frogs that were interfering with my her getting some zzzzzz's). So for all you nature lovers/travel buffs this one is for you: If you are looking to visit the Coqui frog capital of the world head to El Yunque, a forest in a Puerto Rican mountain range, which begins about 300 feet above sea level and goes to 3,500 feet. It is tropical, wet and is known for its rich environment. It also boasts large numbers of snails, reptiles and, of course, Coqui frogs, which are named after the sound they make. El Yunque is also home to the Puerto Rican parrot, which is considered critically endangered due to its low numbers in the wild and in captivity. According to biologists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in 1973 there were only 13 birds in the wild, but those numbers have increased a bit thanks in part to a program in captivity. El Yunque is dominated by water, and waterfalls can be seen everywhere. The area is considered mysterious and is popular among nature enthusiasts. But, if the trip to Puerto Rico seems a bit much to you, head to Hawaii, the Coqui frogs are waiting. Related Articles: Traveling With Children-Learn From My Mistakes Flying with Children: Layover or Not? Learn more about Michele Cheplic  Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism. Relevanttravel tags User Comments No comments on this article yet. Be the first to comment! Community Tags coqui frogs, El Yunque, hawaii, Puerto rico, Travel Discuss this article
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