Contact: Mike Horyczun
Director of Public Relations
(203) 413-6735
For Immediate Release
November 5, 2009
Eat or Be Eaten: Animal Survival Strategies
November 21, 2009 – November 28, 2010
Bruce Museum, 1 Museum Drive, Greenwich, CT 06830
Gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) with domestic chicken (Gallus gallus)
Bruce Museum collection
The fascinating and sometimes bizarre adaptations of predators and prey in the natural world are
the focus of the new year-long exhibition organized by the Bruce Museum entitled Eat or Be Eaten:
Animal Survival Strategies, on view from November 21, 2009, through November 28, 2010. In the
complex web of life, animals have evolved a variety of strategies that help them find food and avoid
becoming someone else’s meal in the struggle for survival. Over seventy specimens of insects, shells,
fish, reptiles, mammals, and birds from the Bruce Museum collection illustrate how animals detect,
capture and consume prey while minimizing risk from predators.
Museum visitors may need to take a second look to find the camouflaged creatures hiding in plain
sight while their cryptic coloration provides disguise as a leaf, stick or part of the snowy landscape. The
show examines how the spots on a young fawn, stripes on a mackerel, and patterns on butterfly wings
help these animals survive. A pair of scarlet tanagers demonstrates how different sexes and seasons
mean big changes in the appearance of some species. Shorebirds and marine fish reveal the advantage
of countershading, a form of camouflage found in widely diverse animals who have light bellies and dark
backs.
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Examining form and function as well as behavioral adaptations, the exhibition includes some of
the speediest, most dangerous, and unusual creatures on earth. Compare fossil and modern-day
dragonflies to see how little has changed in 150 million years with the world’s fastest insect. An
exploration of animal motion features the pronghorn, which can outrun a cheetah over a long distance.
Skulls of carnivores such as shark, mountain lion, alligator and harpy eagle contrast with those of
omnivores like the opossum and muskrat and plant-eaters like the rabbit and fossil horse. Microscopic
views of the different mouthparts of the mosquito, bee, fly, and tick show why not all bites are the same.
Some animals with special chemical defenses, like the skunk, advertise their presence with
warning colors that let predators know to keep their distance. But mimicking imposters also have evolved
to take advantage of these defensive powers in many insects, such as the Monarch, Viceroy, and Queen
butterflies. The platypus is one of the few venomous mammals, but that is not that only unusual
adaptation of this unique creature; it finds prey with its sensitive bill and the ability to detect tiny electrical
impulses sent by muscle contractions from its prey.
A diorama brings predator and prey together to illuminate the varied survival strategies of the
coyote, woodcock, turtle, mouse, hawk, fish, vulture and insects, creating a scene that sparks the
imagination of who might eat whom and who will escape detection. A video presentation shows live
animals enduring the “Trials of Life” as they find food and avoid predation.
Interactive stations provide visitors of all ages with hands-on activities based on concepts in the
exhibition. Visitors can try to find the animal blending into its surroundings and play a computer game to
learn about the food web. Another interactive station asks the visitor to compare bird beaks to everyday
tools and to decide which one acts as a strainer, nutcracker, chisel, or straw. The exhibition also includes
touchable examples of fur, scales, teeth and claws.
The exhibition Eat or Be Eaten: Animal Survival Strategies is organized by the Bruce Museum
and supported by Anne and Fred Elser, the Elizabeth Elser Doolittle Charitable Trusts, a Committee of
Honor under the leadership of Richard and Debra Kolman, and the Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce
Exhibition Fund.
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The Bruce Museum is located at 1 Museum Drive in Greenwich, Connecticut, USA. General admission is
$7 for adults, $6 for seniors and students, and free for children under five and Bruce Museum members.
Free admission to all on Tuesdays. The Museum is located near Interstate-95, Exit 3, and a short walk
from the Greenwich, CT, train station. Museum hours are: Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., and closed Mondays and major holidays. Groups of eight or more require
advance reservations. Museum exhibition tours are held Fridays at 12:30 p.m. Free, on-site parking is
available. The Bruce Museum is accessible to individuals with disabilities. For information, call the Bruce
Museum at (203) 869-0376, or visit the Bruce Museum website at www.brucemuseum.org.
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