Immerse yourself in the world of ‘Amazing Pollinators’ opening June 15
For immediate release ‐ May 29, 2024
Contact: Jon Pishney, 919.244.7913. Images available upon request
Summer exhibition mixes fascinating stories with urgent messages about pollinators.
[RALEIGH, N.C.] — Transform into bees, bats and butterflies and get your game on in the vibrant world of “Amazing Pollinators,” opening at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences on Saturday, June 15.
The centerpiece of this unique, bilingual (English and Spanish) exhibit is a visually stunning, playable maze. Hundreds of beautiful interactive flowers are spread across nine environments. Visit lotus flower blossoms in the rainforest, find saguaro cactus in the desert, and watch moon flowers glow in the black lit Night room, just for nocturnal pollinators.
In the maze, visitors take on 48 survival missions from eight different pollinator groups, including bats, bees, beetles, birds, butterflies, moths, flies and wasps. There are six missions for each group that increase in complexity and difficulty, putting players in the shoes of different species like the hibiscus bee, soldier beetle or ruby-throated hummingbird.
To succeed, players must think like a pollinator and navigate the many challenges faced by pollinators on a daily basis. If players manage to survive the missions, they’ll earn exclusive titles and be rewarded with finding out about some rather bizarre relationships between plants and pollinators, how pollinators support our ecosystems, and the vital role they play in our food supply.
The exhibit also features information on how to help pollinators at home and in the community, as well as an opportunity for guests to build their own powerful pollinator. The game parlor includes classic games with a twist, like mason bee mancala, invasive species shuffleboard, mutualism dominoes, and more. In the “Maze Flower Quest” area, younger children may participate in mini missions by choosing a pollinator and flying it to its target flower in the maze.
Visitors can also enjoy a series of images from National Geographic photographer Christian Ziegler, who teamed up with Museum mammalogist Roland Kays to study and document the unusual pollinators of Panamanian balsa trees.
Pollinators truly are vital to our everyday lives. Not only do they support our own food supply, but they are critical to natural ecosystems and wildlife. Some plants and pollinators have such specialized relationships that if one were to disappear, the other would surely follow. What better way to find out just how important pollinators are than to join the buzz and get in on the action at “Amazing Pollinators.”
Recipient of the 27th annual Thea Award for Outstanding Achievement from the Themed Entertainment Association, this cleverly conceived exhibit sparks interest in the natural world, spurs at-home observation of plants and pollinators, and provides an astounding magnitude of science and nature education in a cohesive, fun exhibit that engages all.
“Amazing Pollinators” runs through Sept. 29. Tickets are available on-site at the Museum Box Office and online at naturalsciences.org/pollinators. Prices: $12 for adults; $8 for children ages 3-12; free for Members.
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