A chameleon
A new exhibit featuring live animals opens at Whitaker Center on Friday.
“Survival of the Slowest: Counterintuitive Adaptations” will teach visitors how some of the world’s slowest-moving species have adapted to survive using defenses that make speed irrelevant.
Like how rattlesnakes use venom to kill prey so they can eat at their leisure. Or how sloths’ slowness and nocturnal nature sets them up to avoid their main daytime-hunting predator, harpy eagles.
The exhibit boasts 19 habitats containing live animals and plants—this includes the two-toed sloth, green iguana and chameleon alongside dozens of other slow species.
“We know our community is hungry for programming that challenges and inspires,” Mary Oliveira, president & CEO of the center, said. “This exhibition delivers that, and we’re proud to bring it to Harrisburg.”
Oliveira added that the program is sure to spark curiosity and deepen visitors’ connections to the natural world.
Hands-on encounters and live educator-led presentations will run in line with the exhibit to show visitors how slowness, camouflage, venom, energy conservation and other traits enable entire species to survive.
Produced by Canada’s largest exotic animal rescue organization, Little Ray’s Nature Centres, the exhibit runs Feb. 27 to May 24. The Whitaker Center is open Friday to Monday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information on the exhibit, visit the Whitaker Center’s website.
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