Resources for Educators
and the Community
Zoo Webcams
On Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015 the director/curator of the Jurica-Suchy Nature Museum, Karly Tumminello, co-presented at the Wild Things conference with Susan Ask, founder of animalia project, and Mike Redmer, a senior biologist of USFWS.
Their presentation, “Bears, Cougars, and Wolves, Oh My!… Adapting to Life with Large Carnivores in Chicago’s Urban Wilderness” looked at the current trends in these three species returning to the Midwest region, where they were previously extirpated from during the 1800’s.
Key takeaways from this talk:
1) Sightings of black bears, cougars and wolves will remain infrequent in the near future. Generally, young males may move through our region looking for suitable habitat and food resources (such as the white-tailed deer).
2) The fact that these animals are looking for suitable habitat in our region speaks to the successes of collective and continued conservation efforts. Restoration projects have successfully increased biodiversity in many ways.
3) These creatures generally avoid all contact with humans. However, there are measures we as humans need to take to ensure we do not inadvertently attract these animals. This includes things like securing trash cans, taking in bird feeders at night, and not leaving our pets outdoors unattended.
4) It may be challenging to identify an animal, especially if seeing it for the first time. There are many key characteristics to look for which may help distinguish between similar species. If at a safe distance, you could try to get a photograph to submit to an expert for confirmation.
Report any unusual wildlife sightings here: http://web.extension.illinois.edu/wildlife/sightings.cfm
The Jurica-Suchy Nature Museum at Benedictine University is not affiliated with any of the above links or resources, and does not endorse or promote any information or sales of the associated materials. These resources are intended to assist educators and parents to connect children with environmental and natural interactions and educational experiences, as well as to promote lifelong learning in all ages. Parents and educators should screen any resources before sharing with their children. If you find any links are broken or any inappropriate material is found within any links (as links and content do change over time), please email us at [email protected] so we can remedy the situation immediately. We are continuing to build out this page, so if you have suggestions, comments or ideas, please let us know! We hope you find that these resources help you further your understanding and appreciation of the world’s natural and cultural diversity.
Jurica-Suchy Nature Museum
Birck Hall of Science, Room 222
5700 College Road
Lisle, IL 60532
[email protected]
Director/Curator
Karly Tumminello
Birck Hall, Room 229
(630) 829-6531
[email protected]
Education Coordinator
Birck Hall, Room 229
[email protected]
Collections Manager
Colleen Filipek
Birck Hall, Room 215
(630) 829-1142
[email protected]
A Catholic University in the Benedictine Tradition, founded in 1887.
Lisle Campus
5700 College Rd. Lisle, IL 60532
(630) 829-6000
Mesa Campus
225 E. Main St. Mesa, AZ 85201
(602) 888-5500