Turtle Travels

OPENING SEPTEMBER 14, 2024

This interactive exhibit offers a turtle’s-eye view of life in the “slow lane.”

Research shows turtles actually live in and travel through a surprising diversity of habitats. Their journeys are filled with challenges! These findings— and many other turtle studies— come from the use of radio telemetry that tracks how animals move around their habitats. You’ll have a chance to check out this science and see how it works.

Start your journey at the exhibition entrance. There’s a child’s bench to sit on and take a photo (you’ll need to rest up for your journey!). Once you step onto the giant board game, follow the instructions and you’ll be detoured to interactive games. Find out what it’s like for a turtle trying to cross a road or traverse changing habitats. Be a turtle tracker and see how real field biologists track animals in the wild. The lively setting has plenty to keep children busy as they play the game. An underwater video shows how a sea turtle swims. Trek along this turtle terrain and you’ll find out that slow and steady not only wins the race, but takes turtles on some amazing journeys!

You’ll also discover cool turtle and tortoise facts— how their bodies and shells have adapted to many different habitats, why they need shells, the hazards they encounter in the wild, how they are important to many different cultures, and more. Turtle Travels provides unusual perspectives on these amazing reptiles.

The exhibition has a variety of family-friendly components, including:

• A Swiss Army turtle with moveable feet illustrating how turtle’s limbs are adapted to fit its environment
• Cutout "turtle traveler" and “turtle tracker” photo ops
• A restful spot to lounge on a turtle and discover the many turtles that star in children’s tales

Turtle Travels is developed by the Environmental Exhibit Collaborative (EEC) with funding by Jane’s Trust and IMLS, and produced by EcoTarium (Worcester, MA) in partnership with the Sciencenter (Ithaca, NY).