#perkinswildlifecenter

Our Museum's snowshoe hares (Lepus americanus) have almost shed to their winter white coat! In the northern Arctic summer, snowshoe hares have brown fur, but as seasons change and fall turns to winter, they gradually shed their brown fur to white. This change in coat color helps hares hide from predators in white winter snow, but what will happen in a changing climate? Will evolution by natural selection cause hares to be brown year round? How will this affect predators that rely on hares as a food source? Only time will tell. (Either way, they're super cute.) . #clevelandrocks #cle #cleveland #cmnh #ohio #snowshoehare #perkinswildlifecenter #wildlife #lepusamericanus #clevelandmuseumofnaturalhistory #ilovemuseums #lovemyjob #hare #bunny (at Cleveland Museum of Natural History)

Today was a good day. . As an educator at the museum, I'm responsible for working with and being trained on our education animals, including raptors. Today was my first date with Vinnie the Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura). Vinnie is a rehabilitated bird with a wing injury that cannot be returned to the wild. Instead, these rehabilitated animals become ambassadors for their species, helping inner city school children and the public understand more about the natural world, especially animals that are misunderstood. Education and inspiring wonder about wildlife is unbelievably important, as animals, especially vultures, become more threatened by humanity's actions in the wild. . #wildlife #ilovemuseums #conservation #wildlifeconservation #turkeyvulture #vulture #perkinswildlifecenter #museumsmatter #museum (at Cleveland Museum of Natural History)