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The Virginia Living Museum is home to thousands of animals found throughout Virginia including reptiles, mammals, birds and fish. With its rivers and waterfalls, mountains and sandy coast, Virginia has an array of wildlife ranging from the extremely rare red wolf to the aluminous moon jellyfish. Virginia has over 10,000 species, boasting some of the nations greatest and most endangered wildlife including the shortnose sturgeon fish and hellbender, an amphibian that is rarely seen in the wild.
Over the last 400 years Virginia’s habitats have drastically changed. Once covered with old growth forest, wetlands and floodplains, Virginia’s environment has been replaced by dams, roads, fields and houses. Wetlands and floodplains have been filled in to make room for crops and neighborhoods. Because of the drastic change in habitat, the woods buffalo, timber wolf, red wolf, elk and other species have been eradicated. Virginia has 110 species on its Endangered and Threatened List including the loggerhead sea turtle, red wolf, shortnose sturgeon, hellbender, bald eagle, canebrake rattlesnake and bog turtle, all of which can be found at the Virginia Living Museum.
We can only imagine the wilderness that the first Jamestown colonists encountered in 1607. Click here for podcasts to hear the words of these colonists as they saw many of Virginia's animals and plants for the first time.
Click here to learn about the red wolf pups born at the museum on April 26, 2007. Three of the pups are on exhibit. Quicktime video of the pups on June 21 is available here: video 1 , video 2.
Click on the links below to find out more about your favorite Virginia Living Museum resident. Plan your visit to get up close and personal with Virginia’s wildlife.
Virginia’s Amphibians
You can see both aquatic and terrestrial frogs and salamanders at the Virginia Living Museum, including the largest treefrog in Virginia, the barking treefrog (state threatened); the largest salamander, the eastern hellbender (federal concern); the largest mole salamander, the eastern tiger salamander (state endangered); the aquatic mudpuppy and greater siren, and the wood frog, which is known for its ability to tolerate freezing.
Virginia’s Aquatic Life
The Virginia Living Museum is home to over 100 species of fish and aquatic invertebrates. Some of the most interesting aquatic life at the VLM includes the prehistoric paddlefish and shortnose sturgeon, the rare loggerhead sea turtle, the luminous moon jelly, the inquisitive octopus and the sinuous eel. The VLM exhibits several endangered and threatened species including the shortnose sturgeon (federal endangered), blackbanded sunfish (state endangered), Roanoke logperch (federal endangered), paddlefish (state threatened) and the loggerhead sea turtle (federal threatened).
Virginia’s Birds
Songbirds, owls, coastal birds, turkeys and raptors all make their home at the Virginia Living Museum. Our newest exhibit on the mountain section of the outdoor trail displays the two vultures found in Virginia: the turkey vulture and black vulture.
Virginia’s Mammals
Beavers, otters, foxes, coyotes, raccoons and bobcats are all animals that live around us, but are seldom seen. Visitors can see them on the museum's outdoor trail, along with deer and red wolves, the most endangered mammal in North America. Six pups were born at the museum on April 26, 2007. Three of the pups are on exhibit, the other three were transferred to the Alligator River Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina.
Virginia’s Reptiles
There are 30 species of snakes, 24 species of turtles, and 9 species of lizards that can be found in Virginia. At the Virginia Living Museum you can see all three venomous snakes found in Virginia (copperhead, cottonmouth and timber rattlesnake). The VLM exhibits several threatened species including the American alligator (federal), eastern glass lizard and wood turtle (state). Also see one of the smallest turtles in the state, the spotted turtle.
Conservation
Seahorse Breeding Program
The Virginia Living Museum recognizes that seahorse populations are declining and that taking them from the wild could be potentially detrimental to local populations. The VLM hopes that holding and displaying seahorses will heighten awareness of marine conservation issues, engage public support and provide the opportunity to study and improve our knowledge of their biology. The Virginia Living Museum does not collect seahorses from the wild, instead we get animals from facilities that breed captive individuals.
Red Wolf Species Survival Program
The Virginia Living Museum partiicpates in the federal program to reintroduce red wolves into the wild. The museum is the closest facility to Alligator River, the only place in the country where red wolves currently live in the wild.
Year of the Frog 2008
The Virginia Living Museum is participating in the Year of the Frog to raise awareness of the threats facing frogs...and toads and salamanders, too! Click here for the top 8 things you can do in 2008 to help amphibians.
Virginia’s Threatened and Endangered Species List
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