Given the craziness around the Swine Flu, we decided to stay away from the crowded playplaces and headed to the South Shore Natural Science Center (SSNSC) in Norwell, MA. This nonprofit organization is dedicated to educating the public about the natural and cultural environments of the South Shore. The entry fee for adults is $5 ($4 with AAA card) and $3 for children 2 and over.

Situated on 30 acres, with 200 surrounding acres of conservation and recreation land, the SSNCS offers hours of nature education and fun for kids. There are three main areas to check out at the SSNCS: the EcoZone, Coes Greenhouse, and nature trails and conservation land.

The EcoZone is the main thing to check out inside the SSNCS, featuring displays and interactive exhibits about the habitat of southeastern Massachusetts, including wetlands, woodlands and meadows. While this area appeared small at first, there were quite a few areas of interest to us and the little guy and you could easily take up 30 to 45 minutes exploring the various animals and environments.

Walking into the exhibit, there are several different displays on the walls featuring ecosystems of southeastern Massachusetts. This area leads into the EcoZone, where we were immediately drawn to the Creature Corner, with cages of various reptiles set into the wall allowing for close up views through Plexiglas. Snakes, turtles, salamanders, and frogs make the Creature Corner their home and were quite fun to view. My son enjoyed trying to get the attention of the snakes and turtles in this exhibit.

In the middle of this room is a large pool with turtles swimming around and basking in the heat of a sun lamp. This area provides for some great close-up views of the turtles. If your kids aren’t tall enough, you’ll have to pick them up to see into this pool. On the other side of this pool is a smaller frog pond inhabited by a large bullfrog. In between the turtle and frog ponds is a hollow log big enough for kids and adults to crawl through. There are peepholes in this log letting your kids see an underwater view of the ponds. Depending on your kids’ interest level, you could spend an hour or more viewing and discussing the exhibits. Make sure you pay a visit to the large iguana near the exit.

After checking out the indoor stuff, we headed outside for a short hike and to view the owl exhibit. There are six different trails you can explore, which take you through the wooded land and feature signs along the way explaining some of the sites on the path. We read about maple syrup spigots and different reasons why trees were damaged. We were running short on time, so we took a short trail, but you could combine trails for a longer hike if you so desired. The owl exhibit is outside and features Hedwig, a barred owl who is native to the area. This exhibit lets you view Hedwig from about 10-15 feet away.

We visited on a Saturday, but due to some time constraints missed the two programs they offer on Saturdays. At 10AM there is a “Feed the Animals” program, and at 2pm there is a “Meet an Animal” program. If you are visiting on a Saturday it would be good to time your visit to coincide with one if these.

Dad Says: Big doesn’t always mean better! This place offers some cool close up views of reptiles and amphibians and the trails were easy to walk and the signs were good conversation starters about various natural happenings.

Uncle Says: The SSNSC is one of those “hidden gems.” It was cool to see some of the local animals and learn about the local trees and plants. I can’t wait to go back again with my nephew to see a “Meet an Animal” show.

Web Site: http://www.ssnsc.org/

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 7th, 2009 at 4:55 am and is filed under Museums, Places to Go, Zoos. If you use RSS, you can subscribe to the RSS feed , or if you would rather receive an e-mail, please subscribe to the e-mail in the lower right hand corner of this page. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.