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ARMA —
ARMA — Madagascar hissing cockroaches, a giant skink and a friendly ball python invaded the Arma City Library Thursday.
The creepy crawly critters came from the Sedgwick County Zoo, Wichita, accompanied by Milo Anderson, zoo educator, and Jakoe Barnes, intern.
“In keeping with the ‘Dream Big’ theme of your summer reading program, we will focus on nocturnal animals,” Anderson said.
He and Barnes started off the program by circulating through the crowd with hands full of the hissing cockroaches. Some youngsters touched them, but many did not.
“We have to give them a big old thank-you,” Anderson said. “They’re part of the clean-up crew. They love to eat rotten, stinky, moldy, decomposing everything.”
Barnes also took around a stuffed barred owl, pieces of zebra and tiger pelts, a plastic model of a tiger’s skull, a preserved alligator head and a delicate bat skeleton.
“Bats are five-star animals when you think of nocturnal animals,” Anderson said. “We need to give them a thank-you because they eat tons of mosquitos.”
He also displayed two more live animals, Solomon, a skink from the Solomon Islands, and Nyoka, a ball python.
“Nyoka was a pre-school classroom pet before she came to the zoo,” Anderson said. “I used to hate snakes. If a snake program came on TV, I had to change the channel. Then I got to know Nyoka.”
He explained after the program that the animals used for educational visits are kept in a separate collection from display animals.
“The education animals have to be handled daily to keep them accustomed to being around people,” Anderson said.
He said the educational trips are a big part of his job, along with field trips, and he loves his work.
“I came from Minnesota to Kansas because of the zoo,” Anderson said.
Sedgwick County Zoo staff have been presenting programs at the Arma City Library for several years, but this was a milestone for librarian Christie Wilson, who is stepping down from her post to be a stay-at-home mother.
“This is my last presentation,” she said as she put out more chairs for the larger-than-expected audience.
After the Arma visit, Anderson and Barnes loaded up Nyoka, Solomon, the cockroaches and the rest of their educational materials and headed south to present their program at the Pittsburg Public Library.
ARMA — Madagascar hissing cockroaches, a giant skink and a friendly ball python invaded the Arma City Library Thursday.
The creepy crawly critters came from the Sedgwick County Zoo, Wichita, accompanied by Milo Anderson, zoo educator, and Jakoe Barnes, intern.
“In keeping with the ‘Dream Big’ theme of your summer reading program, we will focus on nocturnal animals,” Anderson said.
He and Barnes started off the program by circulating through the crowd with hands full of the hissing cockroaches. Some youngsters touched them, but many did not.
“We have to give them a big old thank-you,” Anderson said. “They’re part of the clean-up crew. They love to eat rotten, stinky, moldy, decomposing everything.”
Barnes also took around a stuffed barred owl, pieces of zebra and tiger pelts, a plastic model of a tiger’s skull, a preserved alligator head and a delicate bat skeleton.
“Bats are five-star animals when you think of nocturnal animals,” Anderson said. “We need to give them a thank-you because they eat tons of mosquitos.”
He also displayed two more live animals, Solomon, a skink from the Solomon Islands, and Nyoka, a ball python.
“Nyoka was a pre-school classroom pet before she came to the zoo,” Anderson said. “I used to hate snakes. If a snake program came on TV, I had to change the channel. Then I got to know Nyoka.”
He explained after the program that the animals used for educational visits are kept in a separate collection from display animals.
“The education animals have to be handled daily to keep them accustomed to being around people,” Anderson said.
He said the educational trips are a big part of his job, along with field trips, and he loves his work.
“I came from Minnesota to Kansas because of the zoo,” Anderson said.
Sedgwick County Zoo staff have been presenting programs at the Arma City Library for several years, but this was a milestone for librarian Christie Wilson, who is stepping down from her post to be a stay-at-home mother.
“This is my last presentation,” she said as she put out more chairs for the larger-than-expected audience.
After the Arma visit, Anderson and Barnes loaded up Nyoka, Solomon, the cockroaches and the rest of their educational materials and headed south to present their program at the Pittsburg Public Library.
