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The huge, moving creatures in the exhibit measure 6 to 8 feet in length and inhabit natural settings with looming blades of grass. Each component contains a system of animated robotics, or “animatronics,” that enables it to exhibit lifelike movements such as curling tails, snapping claws, and moving legs. Two static dragonflies with 10-foot gossamer wingspans soar nearby. “Each robotic insect has been recreated from a living specimen so that lifelike colors and movements could be captured,” said Gene Bullard, the creator of Backyard Monsters. To ensure that the giant bugs were scientifically accurate to the smallest detail, Arthur Evans, Ph.D., resident entomologist of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, consulted on insect anatomy and behavior. The result is an exhibit so realistic and true to life that it was endorsed by the Entomological Society of America. Interactive learning displays and a large collection of real specimens enhance the exhibit. See your friends and family in multiple through an insect’s compound eye at "The “Bug’s Eye View” display. “The Better to Eat You With” shows how insects chew plants, sip nectar, and suck blood. Kids can control six-legged robotic creatures at “Robo-Bugs” and put together 3-D puzzles at “Assemble an Ant.” The “First Flyers” station invites you to manually activate a mechanical apparatus that demonstrates two different methods of flight in the bug world. “It’s a Flea’s Life” depicts how fleas live on a dog’s body and why they are suited to their environment. “Better to Eat You With” shows the different methods that grasshoppers, butterflies, and mosquitoes use to intake food. Children can transfer raised images of bugs onto paper using crayons as souvenirs to take home. Backyard Monsters: The World of Insects at the Delaware Museum of Natural History is sponsored by DuPont. |
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