Hello Zoochatters, I am back with another facility review and species list. This will be the first of 3 review/species list threads that I will be posting in the coming days/weeks (depending on when I have time) regarding the (AZA-accredited) zoos and aquariums of Virginia.
As with my previous lists, I will give a brief overview and review of each exhibit, along with the species present. Latin names are provided for your convenience. Anything noteworthy regarding animal visibility or exhibit states will also be noted.
Also, unlike my previous threads, I will split my review and list across multiple posts, to make it easier for me to manage.
Lastly, if an animal is signed, but not seen, I will simply mark it as not seen. I will only mark an animal as "off-exhibit" as opposed to not seen if I get confirmation the animal is actually off-exhibit (such as a sign or from a keeper).
I have also compiled a species list in the form of an iNaturalist list which you can view here -> [VISIT] Virginia Living Museum Species List. Do note that this includes every species that was signed; I will explain why this is important later.
Astrotom3000's Virginia Venture
Last week, I had just gotten back from a week-long trip to Virginia Beach, VA during which I have managed to visit all of Virginia's AZA-accredited facilities. This may sound impressive until you realize that A) Virginia only has 3 accredited facilities, and B) they are all located within the Hampton Roads area. The actual main impetus for embarking on this trip was to attend the Oceana Navel Station Airshow with my family. With all 3 zoological facilities located not far away, I couldn't pass up on the opportunity to expand my travels.
This first thread will cover the Virginia Living Museum in Newport News, VA. This is the first of the 3 VA facilities that I visited during my trip and was my 32nd zoological facility overall. My date of visit was September 18, 2023. I also visited the Virginia Zoo and the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center. Those will come later.
Overview
The Virginia Living Museum (VLM) is a museum/zoo/aquarium (kind-of) located in Newport News, VA. Located within Deer Park, the museum focuses on the natural ecology of Virginia, mainly showcasing native wildlife and plants. The museum consists of the circular 2-story main building, which contains a variety of exhibits and also serves as the museum's entrance and main hub. The museum additionally features nearly a mile of outdoor trails, most of which is elevated boardwalk that traverses through bottomland floodplain forest. Over 100 species can be found at the museum, of which the majority are Virginia natives.
The museum also features a planetarium, but they only run shows on the weekends, so I missed out being a weekday visitor. Also, their on-site cafe was closed for reasons that were unclear, but thankfully, they did allow me to leave to grab lunch and return.
Overall, I found the VLM to be a very strong native-focused facility. The exhibitry and colleciton overall are very solid, and the facility is well laid-out. The indoor exhibits are well-organized and designed, and the presentation overall is good. The pair of 2-story "greenhouse"-style exhibits at the back of the main building are especially good. The outdoor trail not only showcases some of the museum's collection, but also interacts with the natural environment, providing various opportunities to see wild animals.
One big complaint I do have about the museum is that they seem to have trouble keeping their signage up to date, and I will highlight this as I go through each exhibit. Signage in some spots was either outdated or just flat-out missing. There were a couple of other instances like this where the museum does give off slight "best-days-are-behind-us-so-why-bother" vibes, but despite that, I still consider the VLM to be an overall solid facility and I really enjoyed my time there (I spent the entire day at the facility, so there's that).
Without further ado, let's dig in.
Next Post: Main Building - Entrance Level
As with my previous lists, I will give a brief overview and review of each exhibit, along with the species present. Latin names are provided for your convenience. Anything noteworthy regarding animal visibility or exhibit states will also be noted.
Also, unlike my previous threads, I will split my review and list across multiple posts, to make it easier for me to manage.
Lastly, if an animal is signed, but not seen, I will simply mark it as not seen. I will only mark an animal as "off-exhibit" as opposed to not seen if I get confirmation the animal is actually off-exhibit (such as a sign or from a keeper).
I have also compiled a species list in the form of an iNaturalist list which you can view here -> [VISIT] Virginia Living Museum Species List. Do note that this includes every species that was signed; I will explain why this is important later.
Astrotom3000's Virginia Venture
Last week, I had just gotten back from a week-long trip to Virginia Beach, VA during which I have managed to visit all of Virginia's AZA-accredited facilities. This may sound impressive until you realize that A) Virginia only has 3 accredited facilities, and B) they are all located within the Hampton Roads area. The actual main impetus for embarking on this trip was to attend the Oceana Navel Station Airshow with my family. With all 3 zoological facilities located not far away, I couldn't pass up on the opportunity to expand my travels.
This first thread will cover the Virginia Living Museum in Newport News, VA. This is the first of the 3 VA facilities that I visited during my trip and was my 32nd zoological facility overall. My date of visit was September 18, 2023. I also visited the Virginia Zoo and the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center. Those will come later.
Overview
The Virginia Living Museum (VLM) is a museum/zoo/aquarium (kind-of) located in Newport News, VA. Located within Deer Park, the museum focuses on the natural ecology of Virginia, mainly showcasing native wildlife and plants. The museum consists of the circular 2-story main building, which contains a variety of exhibits and also serves as the museum's entrance and main hub. The museum additionally features nearly a mile of outdoor trails, most of which is elevated boardwalk that traverses through bottomland floodplain forest. Over 100 species can be found at the museum, of which the majority are Virginia natives.
The museum also features a planetarium, but they only run shows on the weekends, so I missed out being a weekday visitor. Also, their on-site cafe was closed for reasons that were unclear, but thankfully, they did allow me to leave to grab lunch and return.
Overall, I found the VLM to be a very strong native-focused facility. The exhibitry and colleciton overall are very solid, and the facility is well laid-out. The indoor exhibits are well-organized and designed, and the presentation overall is good. The pair of 2-story "greenhouse"-style exhibits at the back of the main building are especially good. The outdoor trail not only showcases some of the museum's collection, but also interacts with the natural environment, providing various opportunities to see wild animals.
One big complaint I do have about the museum is that they seem to have trouble keeping their signage up to date, and I will highlight this as I go through each exhibit. Signage in some spots was either outdated or just flat-out missing. There were a couple of other instances like this where the museum does give off slight "best-days-are-behind-us-so-why-bother" vibes, but despite that, I still consider the VLM to be an overall solid facility and I really enjoyed my time there (I spent the entire day at the facility, so there's that).
Without further ado, let's dig in.
Next Post: Main Building - Entrance Level
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