International Wildlife Museum facts for kids
The International Wildlife Museum was a special natural history museum located in Tucson, Arizona. It was a non-profit museum, meaning it didn't aim to make money. It first opened its doors in 1988. The museum was started by C. J. McElroy as part of an educational program from the Safari Club International Foundation.
Sadly, on January 11, 2024, the foundation shared on social media and the museum's website that the museum had closed for good.
Amazing Animal Collection
The museum was quite large, covering an area of 40,000 square feet. Inside, you could find more than 400 different kinds of birds, insects, and mammals. Some of the animal displays were very old, even over 100 years old! These amazing pieces were given to the museum by government groups, animal rescue centers, and special programs that help animals have babies.
Many of the displays were made using taxidermy. This is a way of preserving animals so they look lifelike. You could see detailed dioramas, which are scenes that show animals in their natural homes. There were also many mounted animal heads on display.
Some of the most famous exhibits included:
- "Big Terror," a large tiger from India that was killed in 1969.
- A rhinoceros that was collected by President Theodore Roosevelt.
- The huge Irish elk, which had antlers that stretched an amazing 13 feet wide!
- Penguins that were part of Richard E. Byrd’s famous trip to the South Pole.
- A passenger pigeon, a type of bird that is now extinct.
- Even a wooly mammoth, a giant animal from long ago.
Why the Museum Closed
The International Wildlife Museum had been closed for a while without a clear reason. Then, on January 11, 2024, the Safari Club International Foundation made an announcement. They posted on Facebook and the museum's website that the museum had officially closed its doors permanently on December 31, 2023.
The foundation shared a message saying that all events planned after that date were canceled. They also explained what would happen to the museum's collection. Any taxidermy that was borrowed from other groups would be returned. The rest of the museum's taxidermy, animals, and exhibits would be moved to new places. The goal is for these items to keep teaching people about how wonderful wildlife is and how important it is to manage and protect animals.
The Safari Club International Foundation also thanked everyone who had supported the museum over the years. This included the public, museum members, volunteers, workers, and donors.
