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Animal Secrets May 23 - September 6 Where does a chipmunk sleep? What does an eagle feed its young? How do mother bats find their babies in a cave? In Animal Secrets, open May 23 through September 6, visitors to Minnetrista will learn the answers to these questions and more as they explore the hidden habitats and secret lives of forest animals. Animal Secrets is specially designed for children ages 3 through 8, preschool to third grade school groups. Using imaginative role-play and hands-on activities, children will discover nature from an animal's point of view in five naturalistic environments, including a stream, meadow, woodland, cave, and naturalists' tent. |
| Animal Secrets ExhibitThe Stream: A highly interactive stream table and its surrounding environment engage visitors as they dramatize interactions between animals. Visitors mimic how animals take care of their ecological needs, such as finding food and shelter, and nurturing young ones. The Woods: Visitors can explore a woodland clearing, crawl through a tree's roots, play in a chipmunk's den, investigate a raccoon's log and curl up in an eagle's nest. The Meadow: Beautifully illustrated murals, including images of wildflowers, blue heron, butterflies, and a rabbit, transport visitors to a grassy meadow. Visitors can follow four winding sets of animal tracks and listen to specific animal sounds to locate animals. Visitors can create their own butterfly wing patterns using multicolored mosaic tiles. The Cave: Visitors can explore the secret world of a dark woodland cave using tethered lights to search its outcroppings and niches. They can assemble a three dimensional, larger-than-life ant. The Naturalists' Tent: Visitors can role-play working as a naturalist in a canvas tent outfitted with real field equipment and environmental elements. They can examine, compare and contrast the characteristics of five different animal skulls, sort a variety of natural artifacts in order to display an impressive museum collection, and match animal tracks to the animal that made them using paw-like puzzle pieces. Animal Secrets was produced and is toured by the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, Portland, Oregon. The exhibit was made possible with funds provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Additional support provided by the Collins Foundation and Meyer Memorial Trust. | |
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