Carnivore Capades

Monday, February 19, 2018

10:00 AM-5:00 PM

What has terrifying teeth, cunning claws, and sure-footed stealth? A carnivore! Explore the ways that meat-eaters are cool and special while you meet live animals and touch real specimens. Be one of the first to explore our brand-new exhibit, CROCS: Ancient Predators in a Modern World. Sink your teeth in!

Click here for more details and to purchase tickets.

Carnivore Capades Activities: 

11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

Toothy or beaky? Scaly or feathery? Stealthy or strong? The carnivores of the Academy come in all varieties! Learn about the array of meat-eating animals that live here and the awesome adaptations they have developed to survive.

Deadly Dinosaurs

Everybody loves a toothy T. rex! But what about the other dinosaurs that ate meat? Learn about some of the carnivorous dinosaurs that once roamed the earth and check out their fearsome teeth and claws.

Crocodiles Rock!

From the six-inch American alligator hatchling to the 40-foot prehistoric Sarcosuchus, crocodilians capture our curiosity and demand our respect. Check out real Academy specimens, talk to reptile experts, and see how you measure up to some of the biggest crocodiles that ever sprawled on four legs. Discover the difference between an alligator, a crocodile, and a caiman, and find out how you can help protect these awesome animals around the world.

CROC Talk
11:45 a.m.

Enjoy a special keeper talk by Patrick Rein, Reptiland zookeeper and reptile expert. This special presentation is included with admission to CROCS: Ancient Predators in a Modern World.

Carnivore Crafts

Make and take a craft featuring everyone’s favorite carnivores: the big cats!

Owl Pellet Dissection: Microscope Cart

Use cutting-edge technology to explore the remains of an Academy owl’s dinner. What delicious dish did these famous predators consume? Find out as an educator dissects a fresh owl pellet right before your eyes.

CROCS: Ancient Predators in a Modern World

Come face-to-snout with live crocodilians, a group of reptiles that has evolved and thrived for 200 million years thanks to their brute strength, keen senses, and murderous instincts. Today’s crocs range from diminutive forest dwellers to monstrous creatures that eat wildebeests, buffaloes, and occasionally people. Their ancestors were the galloping land predators, jumping insect eaters, pug-nosed herbivores, and ocean-going filter-feeders that haunted our waters and our dreams. Check out live species, including the Siamese crocodile, the broad-snouted caiman, the American alligator, and the West African dwarf crocodile, and peek into a real living American alligator nest. Learn to speak croc in under five minutes, test your strength against a croc’s bite, view skulls, make water dance, and create a 3-D animation of a long-extinct croc. Get the facts on croc attacks, and understand how humans and crocs can coexist today and in the future. Purchase your ticket to CROCS at either admission desk or at the front of the Special Exhibit.