The Great Auk (Pinguinus impennis) was a penguin-like, flightless bird found along coastlines in the north Atlantic. It was valued for its meat, fatty oils, and feathers, and was hunted to extinction in the mid-1800’s. As the bird became more rare, collectors paid handsomely for specimens.
[READ MORE]Category Archives: Zoology
The hummers are coming!
So wrote John James Audubon, noted ornithologist and artist (and first official employee of our predecessor institution, the Western Museum), on the spring migration of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris).
[READ MORE]
Woodrat Hunting With CMC’s Zoology Curator
During the second week of last November, I spent a couple of days at the Museum Center’s Edge of Appalachia preserve looking for my newest study organism – the Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister).
[READ MORE]
The Christmas Bird Count
One of the largest and longest-running citizen science programs in the country is the Christmas Bird Count (CBC).
[READ MORE]
DNA Sequencing Urban Artifact’s Union Terminal Beer
In late 2016, Urban Artifact brewers collected yeast from Union Terminal grounds. A few months later, at a 21+ Curiocity (now Museum on Tap) event, they premiered a new, fruity brew, Union Terminal Bock, made from the National Historic Landmark’s yeast! As a part of the event, we were asked in zoology to determine the yeast’s species. This is how we did it.
[READ MORE]
Bird Feeding Tips for National Bird Feeding Month
Feeding wild birds is fun and relaxing for the whole family, and can help bring you closer to nature – or, rather, bring nature closer to you!
[READ MORE]