EarthFest

Get an up-close look at specimens from the Museum’s scientific collections, while scientists attempt to identify your discoveries–objects or specimens–from the beach, park, garden, or your travels. Past discoveries at the Museum’s Identification Day have included:

• A 3,000-year-old hand axe found in a Staten Island backyard
• Fossilized dinosaur tracks from a slab of rock in Massachusetts
• A 72-million-year-old shark tooth discovered in New Jersey
• A Pleistocene-era fossil walrus skull found on a beach in Virginia

Participating scientists include researchers from the Museum’s Divisions of Anthropology, Earth and Planetary Sciences, Invertebrate Zoology (Department of Entomology), Vertebrate Zoology (Departments of Herpetology, Ichthyology, Mammalogy, and Ornithology), and Paleontology as well as from the Museum’s Microscopy Imaging Facility.

Once you have visited every identification station, test your knowledge with match games, trivia, and more!

Station 1: Learn about species of local flowers as you make a one-of-a-kind art piece using the flower pressing technique.

Station 2: Use colorful beads and string to create friendship bracelets or animals from different ecosystems!

Step up to the Be a Shark station and watch as you transform into a shark, mirroring your movements in real time. Swim, turn, and glide through the virtual ocean, seeing yourself as a powerful predator beneath the waves. Move your body and watch your shark-self respond, bringing the deep-sea adventure to life!

11 am-3 pm only

At this marine-themed station, attendees can immerse themselves in hair, makeup, and nail art, drawing inspiration from the vibrant hues and intricate patterns found in oceanic species. Each design intricately mimics the dazzling displays of marine organisms, showcasing the fascinating interplay of light and color in the depths of the sea.