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Natural history museums with live animals

Discussion in 'Zoo Cafe' started by Onychorhynchus coronatus, 18 Oct 2020.

  1. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    Yes, please do, that would be very interesting to see.
     
  2. UngulateNerd92

    UngulateNerd92 Well-Known Member Premium Member 5+ year member

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    Thank you for your interest, despite my offering, that is a loaded question, so let me start with the one I last visited, which was just before the start of the pandemic.

    Las Cruces Museum of Nature & Science in Las Cruces, Dona Ana County, New Mexico. Of the live animal displays, this one happens to be one of my favorites.

    Here is a species list from my correlating notes and photographs;

    Big Bend slider (Trachemys gaigeae)

    Collared lizard (Crotaphytus collaris)

    Desert kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula splendida)

    Yellow mud turtle (Kinosternon flavescens)

    Red eared slider (Trachemys scripta)

    Western painted turtle (Chrysemys picta)

    Common snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina)

    Black-masked desert scorpion (Hadrurus spadix)

    Glossy snake (Arizona elegans)

    Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum)

    Bluegill (Lepornis macrochirus)

    Canyon tree frog (Hyla arenicolor)

    Madrean alligator lizard (Elgaria kingii)

    Queretaro kingsnake (Lampropeltis ruthveni)

    Red spotted toad (Bufo punctatus)

    Desert millipede (Orthoporus ornatus)

    Colorado river toad (Allotis alvarius)

    Sonoran gopher snake (Pituophis catenifer affinis)

    Woodhouse's toad (Anaxyrus woodhousii)

    Tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum)

    Great Plains toad (Anaxyrus cognatus)

    Western green toad (Anaxyrus debilis)

    Side blotched lizard (Uta stansburiana)

    Prairie fence lizard (Sceloporus undulates)

    Marbled whiptail (Cnemidophorus marmorata)
     
  3. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    Thank you for sharing these species being kept !

    Seems like a very decent collection of amphibians, reptiles and inverts that they have at the Las Cruces Museum.

    What marks it out as being different from others you have visited ?

    Also, the Queretaro kingsnake kept there stands out to me as an interesting addition as it is a "near threatened" species and a Central Mexican endemic.
     
    Last edited: 23 Oct 2020
  4. TheMightyOrca

    TheMightyOrca Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    If a lot of places have them, they must be popular. The one in Houston is spectacular, I go in there on most of my visits! It's definitely very educational. You can get a guide to identify different species while you're in the butterfly area. Part of the Butterfly Center is the Hall of Entomology, more like a regular museum exhibit, with a lot of signs, videos, and activities, along with some smaller insect displays. My favorite is the Chrysalis Corner, you can watch the butterflies break out. If I visit the Butterfly Center I just HAVE to see at least one break out before I move on, lol. But sometimes I'll stay and watch for a long time.
     
  5. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    The good thing about these kind of displays too is that they are interactive and that is a very good thing for a museum to have and particularly when so much is either off limits or behind the panes of glass display cabinets.

    I think there is often a stereotype by the public of museums being "boring" places full of dead things and butterflies are both alive and colourful and exhibits with them sort of fly in the face (pun intended) of these generalizations and help attract greater visitor numbers.

    I can totally understand why butterfly houses are popular features of museums but even so I would also like to see more live specimens being kept and particularly those of conservatin concern.
     
    Last edited: 23 Oct 2020
  6. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    These examples that you mention in Israeli natual history museums sound particularly interesting. Great to hear that both a wide variety of inverts are kept at the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History and that you have connections with this institution.

    Are these insects just kept on display or also used educationally at this museum ?

    The Meir Segals Garden University Zoo also sounds interesting and especially to me because it seems to have a focus entirely on native and endemic Israeli / Palestinian species which is what I have already believe that a zoo should aim for.

    Do they just keep mammals or are there also birds, reptiles and amphibians kept ?
     
    Last edited: 23 Oct 2020
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  7. UngulateNerd92

    UngulateNerd92 Well-Known Member Premium Member 5+ year member

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    Good question. Yes they do keep birds, reptiles, and amphibians, but the only examples I listed were mammals.
     
  8. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    I see , are these all endemic or native species too ?
     
  9. UngulateNerd92

    UngulateNerd92 Well-Known Member Premium Member 5+ year member

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    Again, that is their speciality, but not solely what they keep.
     
  10. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    Museo de historia natural, Manuel Martínez Solórzano, Morelia, Mexico - This natural history museum (named after a famous Mexican naturalist from the region) is on one of the cities university campuses and has a live collection of the endemic Lake Patzcuaro salamander / "achoque" (Ambystoma dumerilii). There are also some endemic freshwater fish species kept (haven't been able to discover what these are).

    Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, Pará, Brazil- This natural history is located in the city of Belém, it is named after the famous Swiss naturalist who discovered amongst other species the Goeldi's monkey. The museum has a botanical garden and a collection / zoo of native animals including jaguar, lowland tapir, white cheeked spider monkey, capybara, giant otter, several amazon parrots, several macaw species,currosaws, guans, owls, toucans, freshwater turtles and caiman.
     
    Last edited: 1 Nov 2020
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  11. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    @vogelcommando I just noticed that you uploaded many photographs taken at the Natural academy of sciences in Belgium on the Zoochat gallery.

    These pictures show live exhibits of inverts (phantasmids, tarantula, scorpions, black widow spider), amphibians, fish (marine fish and cichlids) and reptiles (venomous snakes and monitor lizards).

    Do you have any observations of this museum and its live collections ?
     
    Last edited: 2 Nov 2020
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  12. Enzo

    Enzo Well-Known Member

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    The Catavento museum, located in the city of São Paulo has/had 1-2 fish tank(s) with saltwater fish. I was able to see the aquarium/aquaria every single time I went there.
     
  13. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    @Enzo Thank you for your comment, I haven't been to the Catavento yet so haven't seen this, do you remember what species are kept ?
     
  14. Enzo

    Enzo Well-Known Member

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    I remember seeing yellow and regal tangs, as well as common clownfish and lionfish. Searching a bit on the internet, I could find photos of one of the tanks showing other three species of tang (purple, sailfin and one I can't recognize) as well as a yellow fish that looks like a basslet and a yellowtail clownfish.
     
  15. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    So I think I'll post some pictures from the gallery of live displays at different natural history museums around the world to have a visual guide of these in the thread, beginning with these museums in Europe.
     
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  16. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    Germany & Austria

    Museum fur natur und umwelt:

    European pond turtle exhibit :
    [​IMG]
    European grass snake exhibit:
    [​IMG]
    Beehive exhibit:
    [​IMG]
    Freshwater fish (housing ruffe and perch) tank:
    [​IMG]
    Freshwater fish (housing eel, rudd, roach and nase) tank:
    [​IMG]

    Stuttgart museum of natural history:

    Stick insects (species?):
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Photo credits to @German Zoo World.




    Photo credits to @Hvedekorn.
     
  17. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    Belgium

    Museum of Natural Sciences:

    Reptiles and amphibians at the museum:

    Uracoan rattlesnake :
    [​IMG]
    Diamond back rattlesnake:
    [​IMG]
    Monocled cobra :
    [​IMG]
    Ceylon pit viper:
    [​IMG]
    Puff adder:
    [​IMG]
    Baron's racer snake:
    [​IMG]
    Gaboon viper:
    [​IMG]
    Eyelash viper:
    [​IMG]
    King cobra:
    [​IMG]
    Copperhead:
    [​IMG]

    Kimberly rock monitor:
    [​IMG]
    Gila monster:
    [​IMG]
    Oriental fire belly toads :
    [​IMG]
    Yellow headed poison dart frog:
    [​IMG]
    Waxy monkey frog:
    [​IMG]
    Smooth sided toad:
    [​IMG]

    Photo credits to @vogelcommando and @fishpod.
     
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  18. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    Belgium

    Museum of Natural sciences

    Inverts at the museum:

    Newly described stick insects and terrarium:
    [​IMG]
    Great thin stick insect:
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Peruvian stick insect:
    [​IMG]
    Black widow spider:
    [​IMG]
    Mexican red knee tarantula:
    [​IMG]
    Malagasy hissing cockroaches:
    [​IMG]
    Flower beetles :
    [​IMG]
    Brazilian salmon pink bird eating spider:
    [​IMG]


    Photo credits to @vogelcommando and @fish pod.
     
    Last edited: 25 Jan 2021
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  19. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    UK

    Horniman museum (aquarium)

    Giant frogfish:
    [​IMG]
    Bioluminescent coral aquarium:
    [​IMG]
    Lobster tank:
    [​IMG]
    Starfish tank:
    [​IMG]
    Four eyed fish:
    [​IMG]
    Pool frog:
    [​IMG]
    Common frog:
    [​IMG]
    Leaf fish:
    [​IMG]
    Moon jelly fish:
    [​IMG]
    Marine aquarium Fijian reef :
    [​IMG]
    Caribbean mangrove aquarium:
    [​IMG]
    Native freshwater fish aquarium (carp, tench, sticklebacks and rudd ):
    [​IMG]
    Sea horse aquarium:
    [​IMG]
    Harvest mice:
    [​IMG]
    Sea anenomes in a fully functioning Victorian era aquarium:
    [​IMG]
    Amazonian aquarium (several tetra fish species, blue-spotted corydoras, discus, ram, creeping burhead and Indian shot lily ):
    [​IMG]



    Photo credits to @Giant Panda and @devilfish.
     
  20. Onychorhynchus coronatus

    Onychorhynchus coronatus Well-Known Member

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    Manchester museum (herpetarium)

    Golden poison frog:
    [​IMG]
    Strawberry poison dart frog:
    [​IMG]
    Variable harlequin toad:
    [​IMG]
    Eastern casque headed lizard:
    [​IMG]
    Pictured tree frog:
    [​IMG]
    Blue headed anole:
    [​IMG]
    Phantasmal poison dart frog:
    [​IMG]
    Lau banded iguana:
    [​IMG]
    Golden mantella:
    [​IMG]
    Panther chameleon:
    [​IMG]
    Green tree python:
    [​IMG]
    Yellow headed day gecko:
    [​IMG]
    Tomato frog:
    [​IMG]
    Neon day gecko:
    [​IMG]
    Alison's anole:
    [​IMG]
    View of terrariums / gallery:
    [​IMG]
    Terrarium example:
    [​IMG]
    Splendid leaf frog:
    [​IMG]

    Photo credits to @TeaLovingDave , @Javan Rhino , @Bwassa, @devilfish , @gentle lemur , @ThylacineAlive ,
     
    Last edited: 25 Jan 2021
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