Up Close to Animals Presentations: What to expect

By Maggie Gaiero, Program Intern

I recently jumped into the wonderful world of Up Close to Animal talks here at Squam Lakes Natural Science Center. It is a whirlwind of new information from the staff and library research, and then sharing it with the people who are so excited about sitting in our amphitheater to see our animal guests. When I began my first talk I was nervous, but as the presentation continued I fed off of the excitement of the crowd and it was easy to feel relaxed. Now to get up there in front of the fifty or more people who attend one of our Up Close to Animals talks is a piece of cake.

On bright sunny days people pile into our amphitheater seating right next to our Coyote Exhibit. Visitors are free to come and go as they please during a fifteen minute animal presentation. We have so many animals that could be viewed in an Up Close to Animals talk, ranging from things with wings like a Screech owl, to reptiles like our Ball python, even a variety of mammals such as skunks, opossums, and porcupines. Staff members take props such as animal skulls, wings, or even fur pelts for audience members to observe more closely after presentations. They might also share what we call Quinn Boards – or hand painted picture boards – to help display certain topics better. For a woodchuck (which could be seen in a presentation) we have some Quinn Boards that display their elaborate underground tunnel systems!

These talks allow visitors at the Science Center to have personal time with the knowledgeable education staff members that work here at the center as well as seeing an animal. Throughout a presentation people raise their hands with questions. After the presentation is over visitors can even go right up to the presenter and talk about the animal and ask questions they still might have. It really makes my day when after an Up Close to Animals talk a young child comes up and asks how to get my job because they are just so enthralled with the idea of working with live animals!

Up Close to Animals presentations are every hour from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. every day during July and August. Presentations continue on Saturdays and Sundays at 12:00 and 2:00 p.m. during September and October.

Patience and Time

By Aubrey Voelker, Program Intern

If you have ever been to Squam Lakes Natural Science Center you may have attended an Up Close to Animals program. During these programs certain education animals are presented so that the public can get up close to a wild animal and learn about its way of life. While presenting a few of these programs I have received multiple questions regarding the training process that our animals go through so that they are comfortable being in the spotlight. How is it that the skunk or woodchuck are content just hanging out on the table with the many distractions around them? The answer: Patience and Time.

 As a program intern, I've been given the op¬portunity to help train a few future education animals and have experienced this vast amount of patience and time that is needed. One of the main concerns when an animal is on the table is that they will not jump off. It usually doesn't take too long for the animal to realize that it is much more enjoyable to keep their feet on the table. Since we want the animals to feel as comfortable as possible, treats are given to the animal when they are on the table. By doing this the animal associates going on the table with receiving treats making the experience more enjoyable for them.

A young porcupine is one of the animals I helped train. Like most of the animals, it took the porcupine a few jumps before realizing the joys of staying on the table. The next step was getting the porcupine to be comfortable enough to start eating the treats we presented to it. This is when I realized that it's necessary to celebrate the little successes to prevent frustration when progress moves slowly. For many days the young porcupine would just sit in one spot, making few movements. The days that it would stiff at the treats, were days of progress. Finally one day after the porcupine spent the first five minutes sniffing at a piece of apple, it picked it up and started eating. I realize this doesn't sound too exciting to most, but after spending days and days watching the porcupine ignore the treats, this progress made me happier than a bird with a french fry. While this young porcupine is still in the training process, it is beginning to show its face to the public and doing well.

Although the training of an animal can be a long and frustrating process, it is definitely a rewarding experience. In the end it is worth the time and the knowledge I gained is something that I hope to continue to use in the future and beyond my internship.