Susanne My visit to the Heartland Forest on a cold day in February of 2015 had been lots of fun. After a short drive I arrived at my second destination of the day: the Niagara Falls History Museum where a full day of activities had been planned for Family Day, a public holiday in Ontario. When I got there around 2 pm, young families were already lining up in the atrium to see an Earth Rangers presentation; children expressed their creativity at several crafting stations; and families got their pictures taken in one of the upstairs rooms.
A whole series of interesting activities was on tap for Family Day at the Niagara Falls History Museum and hundreds of visitors were eager to participate. While I was waiting to get into the next Earth Ranger’s show I strolled through the museum to see the temporary exhibition on Nature which touched on biodiversity and the relationship between species within food webs, and the gene pools of particular species.
Many of the visitors were admiring the two travelling exhibitions from the Royal Ontario Museum that also feature a fabulous exhibit on owls. Eleven beautiful specimens and various informative panels illustrate the fascinating aspects of owl behaviour, biology and lifestyle. Even the gift shop of the museum was selling various items related to owls.
Crafting activities were also underway at the Niagara Falls History Museum, and children and their parents got their pictures taken on this special day. Museum manager Clark Bernat and Head Curator Suzanne Moase were on hand to direct the activities.
Definitely the most popular activity on Family Fun Dayat the Niagara Falls History Museum was the Earth Rangers presentation. Long lineups formed before each of the five scheduled presentations on this busy day. Earth Rangers is a Canadian children’s conservation organization that dedicates itself to saving and protecting animals and to educating children and families about biodiversity. Three young Earth Rangers were on hand to give a presentation called “Bring Back the Wild”, and they had brought four animal friends with them: a turtle, an owl, a Harris hawk and a red fox to provide a first-hand learning experience. The audience of young children was delighted to see these animals, and even the adults in the room learned some interesting things during this presentation.
Next on tap was another animal-related outing: a visit to the renowned Niagara Falls Butterfly Conservatory.
