The mystery and power be-hind prehistoric animals captures the attention of young and old alike. Yet apart from pictures in books and movies, our face-to-face experience with these marvelous creatures has been limited. Now Chattanoogans are going to be able to get up close and personal with infamous prehistoric predators through a new exhibit coming to the Chattanooga Warner Park Zoo.
This traveling exhibit, in town from April 30 to July 31, presents over 10 lifelike robotic dinosaurs designed and built to scale by a team of scientists, artists and engineers, and features state-of-the-art electronics and air pistons that power the dinosaurs’ movements and sounds.
“It’s going to be one part education, one part entertainment, a whole lot of fun for the entire family and a great draw to bring people to the zoo during the summer months,” Robin Derryberry, of Derryberry Public Relations, representing the zoo, says.
The exhibit will add an additional $2.50 to the zoo admission price for non-Zoo members and an additional $1.50 for Zoo members. The zoo membership itself is a great deal for families at $55 a year for a family that includes two adults and two children. It allows them to come to the zoo as much as they want throughout the year, receive a subscription to Chattazooga Magazine and special discounts throughout the year as well as receive information first about new exhibits and the birth of new babies at the zoo.
Derryberry says that the zoo is always looking for ways to increase the overall experience people have when they come to the Zoo.
“We’ve been fortunate to have the births of some pretty unique animals and to also be making plans for some new animals that are going to be joining us, which is going to take a little bit of time,” she says. “During this time, when we have a little bit of downtime between introducing new exhibits and that type of thing, we thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be fun to bring something in as another attraction during the summer months,’ and so this seemed like a logical fit.”
The dinosaur exhibit is by Kokoro, a leader in the U.S. traveling exhibit field for over 30 years. Natalie Miranda, the business development manager for Kokoro Exhibits says, “We have worked closely with the nation’s leading paleontologist to help create our creatures to be lifelike and carry the qualities we believe these wondrous animals once maintained.
“With our exhibit, the public will journey back in time about 230 million years into the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, when giant dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Our dinosaurs will grab people’s attention and reward their attention with fascination and real understanding,” she says.
Things the public will see from these creatures include feeding, roaring, fighting, hatching and caring for their young and all of these interacting with captivating realism, Miranda says. The sounds, movement, and signage are also specific for each dinosaur.
The dinosaurs that will be taking over the Chattanooga Zoo include the ever popular T-rex; the graceful, soaring Pteranodon; the Apatosaurus; the Triceratops and her cousin, the Chasmosaurus, along with their young; the vicious Deinonychus; the Dimetrodon; the aquatic Mosasaurus; and a family of Maiasaura.
In addition to the amazing robotics of the Kokoro team, there will also be hands on activities like the rub station were children can place a piece of paper on top of a dinosaur picture plate, rub with a crayon and produce an image to take home. There will also be a dino dig area where children can pretend that they are uncovering prehistoric remains.
Other new exhibits and events for the zoo are in the works, too. Slated to open later this year is the “Deserts and Forests of the World” exhibit, which will feature creatures that live in desert and forest biomes such as meerkats, fennec foxes and sloths. Venomous snakes like bush vipers, timber rattlesnakes and copperheads and new amphibians will join this exhibit as well.
The female snow leopard cub born at the zoo on January 10 is soon approaching her time for naming, and members and visitors can still suggest names at the zoo gift shop until April 25. This cub is an important achievement for the conservation of this endangered species since 40 percent of snow leopard cubs do not survive the birth-
ing process.
The popular “Dollar Wednesdays” at the zoo ended on March 2, but beginning on June 1, the zoo will offer “Half-Price Wednesdays” on the first Wednesday of every month.
Michelle Lisotto, of Derry-berry Public Relations, says this enables individuals who might not otherwise be able to afford a trip to the zoo ample opportunities to visit. The new structure also allows the zoo to continue to grow and operate at an exceptional level, she says.
“We had some people upset about getting rid of Dollar Wednesdays, but we just couldn’t continue to offer that and keep the zoo at an exceptional level for it to make sense,” Lisotto says. “We want the zoo to be top-notch and funds help us do so with going right back into bringing exhibits into town.”
An event that helps the zoo in this mission is the annual capital campaign fundraiser, Spirits in the Wild, on May 14 from 7 to 10 p.m. All proceeds from this event go to the zoo’s capital campaign to help with renovations and bringing in new exhibits like Treiu.
Treiu is a six-year-old Francois langur that came from the Toledo Zoological Gardens of Ohio and now lives with the two resident Hunaman langurs at the Himalayan Passage. Francois langurs are among the most endangered monkeys in the world, and Treiu’s outgoing personality is bringing new life to the zoo.
Other activities to catch include the “Hug A Bunny” event on April 23, which will allow visitors to interact with the zoo’s resident bunny.
Registration for the summer zoo camps are already underway and these weeklong camps, for ages three to 14, include daily lessons, hands-on animal encounters and various outdoor games and activities.
These events, activities and new exhibits are exciting and are ways to maximize the experience for those visiting the zoo, Derryberry says.
To learn more about exhibits like Dinosaurs! At the Zoo, visit www.kokorodinosaurs.com.