Saturday was our zoo's Native American Festival. Ds and I signed up to work wherever they needed us, and spent the day manning a booth with biofacts and live animals. This tends to be the most popular booth at events such as these.
We were near the main arena where they held the entertainment-Native American dancers, musicians, etc. A tent blocked most of our view, but we got to see some of the action. The costumes were so rich, and elaborate. Some jingled and jangled as the wearers walked around. The headdresses of feathers were something to behold. I really wish I had gotten pictures, but was too busy working at the time to think about it.
There were several vendors set up under white tents, selling Native American jewelry, bows and arrows for the kids, arrowheads, and annoying little water whistles. They sounded like birds, and every single kid at the festival had one. LOL Thank goodness none of the whistles made their way to my house.
Our booth had a lot of biofacts-animal parts-for people to see. We had several bird wings, skulls of some native predators, an otter pelt, and turtle shells and skulls. People were most impressed by "Pete". He's our Reticulated Python skin, that was harvested after the snake died about 20 years ago. He used to live at Chehaw on exhibit, and was 21 feet long.
We had tree frogs, an opposum, corn snake, and a box turtle in the live category. We noticed a trend in the visitors at the event. If we were just hanging around the booth with no animals, we'd have no visitors. If we pulled out an animal, (especially the snake) we'd have a steady stream of people.
Ds and I had our box turtle U-Haul out for a while, talking about his hinge, that allows him to close up shop if things get frightening. He has gorgeous coloration, so that helps his draw as well. Unfortunately, U-Haul is a busy little guy, so we opted to put him back after he had visited some.
A while later, a visitor comes up, and informs us that our turtle is making a break for it! U-Haul had gotten out of his carrier, and was hauling shell to parts unknown. Praise God for the visitors that noticed him. After that, we placed water bottles on top of his carrier, and checked him frequently.
You meet all types of people at events such as these, especially when there are thousands of visitors coming your way. Children are usually my favorite. They are innocent, curious, and usually love the live animals. I love how their faces light up when they see someone with a critter.
The adults though-well I have to love them too. Like I said, you meet all types. Most are polite and curious, and at least listen to what you have to say. Some are familiar with the animals you are talking about, and share their stories with you. I enjoy that. Some people however...
One young lady came up to our booth, and loudly declared, "Oh my gosh, you murdered all of these animals!" Yes, we're a zoo, and we randomly murder animals for their parts to display to our visitors.
I calmly informed her that we're a zoo, and we love animals. All of the biofacts we are displaying came from animals that died of natural causes. In fact, I told her, the bobcat skull is a bone clone. It was handmade, and isn't even real. She then tells me she loves animals, especially turtles, and was going to go off (make an even bigger scene) if we had harmed the turtles whose shells were were displaying. Sigh.
At this point I was really done with her altogether. It had been a long day, I was tired and hungry, and just didn't care anymore. I kept my composure with her though. When she informed me that she picks up turtles in the road, and throws them in the back of her truck to relocate, I told her she is probably signing their death sentence. It's perfectly fine to move them on across the road, but you don't want to relocate if you can help it. They know where all the shelters, ponds, blackberries, etc are in their territories. If you move them, they are completely lost.
Sometime later, a young boy came by, maybe 9 or 10, and was asking me about the biofacts. As docents, we try to get our visitors thinking, instead of just throwing the names of things out there. So instead of saying, "That's a possum skull", we might say, "It's a nocturnal animal that likes to get into your trash can."
I had been doing that with this young man, and he had guessed one of the wings correctly. Here is the conversation that ensued:
Boy: I must have gotten it right because of my high IQ. Take a guess at how high my IQ is.
Me: It's been a long day, and I am done with guessing. Just tell me.
Boy: It's 119, and that's really good for someone my age.
Just a little self-absorbed there. Just a guess, but he is probably an only child.
I did talk to two gentlemen out of the many many visitors that really stuck with me. The first was an older man, and we started talking about the wings and feathers on display. We talked for a long time about everything, and the conversation flowed so easily. I could have listened to him all day. His father was a farmer, and would plow his fields with mules. The stories this man has to tell...
The second man was an Aztec dancer at the event. We were admiring the 21 foot python skin, and started talking about animals ending up as roadkill. He said that he picks up snakes (especially the venomous ones) after they are hit, and takes them home. He skins them, and throws them on an anthill. Then, after they are cleaned, he uses the bones for medicine. Hey, who am I to judge? At least the animal isn't going to waste. I hope he remembers the adage I taught my kids: A gun is never empty, and a snake is never dead. Yeah, a dead snake can still bite and inject venom into you for a while after death. To be safe, I'd wait two hours before handling. A lot of people don't know this.
It was a good day overall. We rolled and unrolled Pete countless times, chased the box turtle everywhere, talked and talked and talked some more. At the end of the day, I couldn't even speak right. It happens when I get overtired. It was really interesting, and the Native American culture is not something I am exposed to everyday, so it was really neat. We spent 8 hours there, and saw probably well over a thousand people.
God Bless,
Chela
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