You might not expect to find alligators or rattlesnakes in Detroit, and -- thankfully -- you'll only find them safely enclosed in some of the city's museums. Wild animals -- whether live or mounted -- aren't difficult to find in the city's nature museums, which have indoor and outdoor exhibits, educational programs and live demonstrations.
Snakes Alive
- The Detroit Zoo's Holden Museum of Living Reptiles lets visitors get a close-up look at 85 different threatened or endangered species. The animals' habitats closely resemble their native habitats in the wild, giving visitors to the museum a realistic look at their natural surroundings. Species include a Siamese crocodile, reticulated python, Chinese alligator and Aruba Island rattlesnake, and include habitats found from the Arctic to Australia. The museum is open during regular zoo operating hours, and is closed on New Year's Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
A Watery World
- The Lake Erie Metropark Marshlands Museum and Nature Center provides an indoor and outdoor nature experience 20 miles southwest of downtown Detroit. Inside, the museum has an extensive diorama of historic area marshlands and their wildlife, as well as a 1,300-gallon aquarium and interactive exhibits. Outdoors, boardwalks and trails wind across the 200-acre natural displays where you can explore hawthorn thickets, marshes and old canals. Encounter the park's resident bald eagles and view migratory birds, including a large wintering population of tundra swans.
Going Batty
- The Bat Zone at the Cranbrook Institute of Science houses more than 150 bats that are not releasable into the wild. Bats at the facility include vampire bats, fruit bats, flying foxes and endangered species. The museum also houses owls, a sloth, sugar gliders and other nocturnal species. Tour the Bat Zone during limited midday hours seven days a week June through August, and on weekends during the rest of the year. The Cranbrook Institute is a museum of natural history featuring a planetarium, science garden and special exhibits.
Mounted and Stuffed
- The University of Michigan Museum of Natural History lies 40 miles west of Detroit in Ann Arbor. The museum features the largest dinosaur display in the state, including a replica of a fossilized prehistoric snake poised to eat a hatching baby dinosaur. The museum features a wildlife gallery on the third floor where you'll see taxidermy-mounted wildlife in native habitat scenes. The museum's butterfly and pollinator garden blooms with 55 species that produce butterfly-luring nectar. The museum is open year-round except for several holidays.
