Beware of the large, burping cow at the Wilbur D. May Museum.
The new "Animal Grossology" exhibit there is not for the faint of heart, nor for those who would back away from an automated cow that burps. The exhibit focuses on all things poop, pee and bodily-fluid related.
Want to know why dogs smell other dogs' rear ends? Want to know why bird poop is white? Want to know why some animals have white blood?
This exhibit could be for you -- adult or child.
"The exhibit is geared for children from ages 3 to 12, and so far, everyone that has come has loved it," said Bill Ware, a recreation specialist with Washoe County Department of Regional Parks and Open Space. "I think the parents learn just as much as kids do."
He said some children who recently visited brought along vomit bags in case they became too grossed out.
The exhibit encompasses three rooms of the museum. The burping cow can be found in David's Discovery Room, named after David May, a relative of Wilbur D. May.
Visitors will also find one of the most popular displays, the "Penguin Game," in this room. In the "Penguin Game," participants must match four piles of poop to the animals that excreted them. A cat hairball exhibit in David's Discovery Room shows how hairballs are coughed up.
"The reason animals are gross, basically, is for defense or recognition reasons or because maybe that's how they eat," Ware said. "It could be for any reason."
In the Double Diamond Room, things get really gross. There, visitors will find another popular exhibit, called, "Sense of Scent," which focuses on scent identification. Participants must identify four scents they squeeze out through tubes. Those scents won't be revealed here -- but they will completely gross you out.
In the main room, the exhibits feature the Darwin's Frog, the dung beetle and slimy sea creatures. Also in this room is a large submarine that children can enter once they remove their shoes. Children can look through the portholes, steer the submarine and exit through an eel slide out the back.
The exhibits at "Animal Grossology" are hands-on and interactive. Some, such as the dung beetle game, feature computer technology. Others require the participation of several people in entertaining question-and-answer games.
"My favorite exhibit was probably the submarine," said Eric Maria-Calvo, 11, a fifth-grader who recently visited the museum with Bud Beasley Elementary School classmates from Jason Shipman's class. "It was really fun to slide down the slide."
Saturday might be the best time to visit the museum because no school groups will be there then. Tours also are available, but teachers' and parents' groups must request those in advance.
The Wilbur May Foundation and the Reno News and Review are the main supporters of the exhibit.
"We found out that this exhibit was about to be retired, and we wanted to get it before it went away," Ware said. "Out of all the exhibits that are out there, this is the most educational. There are others that are as educational, but none that are as much fun."
Or as gross.
Heidi Avery, 37, of Reno, recently visited "Animal Grossology" with her mother's home-schooling group and her children Hannah, 7, Robbie, 5, and Isabel, 3.
"This a good opportunity for (the kids) to come in and see all the bugs and see all the disgusting things we tell them not to talk about at home," she said.
And how exactly did she sum up the exhibit?
"It's gross," she said.
If you go
What: "Animal Grossology" exhibit
Where: The Wilbur D. Museum at Rancho San Rafael Regional Park, 1595 N. Sierra St.
When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. The exhibit closes April 18.
Cost: $8 for adults and $7 for children younger than 18 and seniors older than 62. Groups of 15 or more: $5.50
Details: 775-785-5961
Fun facts
- The exhibit is based on author Sylvia Branzei's series of "Grossology" books.
- Here's a gross fact featured in the exhibit: "Ostriches are the only birds whose poop is separated from their pee. Most birds have a pee and poo combination."
