Crayfish exhibit

Our "crusty crustaceans" exhibit, which was supposed to be a temporary tank in the Discovery Center, was finally taken down after three successful years and replaced with...crayfish! I know, not a dramatic change and of course they are also crustaceans, but they are cool anyway. We also added a highly modified magnifying glass - to make it indestructible to kids and to protect the exhibit from scratches or worse - that visitors may use to more closely observe the crayfish. Over the years we have had crayfish from various sources, or collected them for fun, but have never formally displayed them. They have been added to permanent exhibits such as Woodland Pond and Mountain Stream, but they are rarely seen and often wander around the museum at night. I have found them at check in heading east from the pond, west from the pond and half-way down the spiral staircase. We also have housed brilliant blue and vibrant red crayfish for years in quarantine (pictured below). The ones currently on exhibit (bottom photo) are native and not so visually dramatic or (hopefully) as adventurous as their predecessors, but cool nonetheless.