Animals are born who they are, accept it and that is that. They live with greater peace than people do.
American Novelist Gregory Maquire
By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
joanne@wktv.org
Time to Supersize
And no, we are not talking McDonald’s. This weekend the John Ball Zoo officially opens for its 2021 season, which will feature the exhibit “BRICKLIVE Supersized!” In the exhibit, more than 30 sculptures have been created using more than two million bricks. The sculptures of some of the world’s smallest animals which have been magnified more than 30 times to create 12-foot pieces. The exhibit is full of fun and information. To get a timed ticket, visit www.jbzoo.org/visitandtickets.
Trailblazing
The weather is iffy on Saturday, but should be pretty nice on Sunday, which means you could hit one of the many trails at any of the local parks. There is the Paul Henry Trail, which runs from 44th Street and Kalamazoo Avenue south to 60th Street and Wing Avenue, or the East West Trail, which runs east from Division Avenue and 50th Street to Kalamazoo Avenue. There is also the Kent Trails which winds its way through the City of Wyoming as well as the Fred Meijer M-6 Trail located near Metro Health. Of course, many of the local parks feature trails and nature paths such as Kentwood’s Paris Park and Wyoming’s Buck Creek Nature Preserve.
Museum Touring
Have you visited the Grand Rapids Public Museum or the Grand Rapids Art Museum lately? The Grand Rapids Public Museum is open from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and features an array of exhibits including “Sean Kenney’s Wild Connections made with Lego Bricks.” For more information, visit www.grpm.org. The Grand Rapids Art Museum is open noon to 6 p.m. Saturday and is featuring the work of Grand Rapids native Mathias Alten along with arts and craft pieces and hero portraits created by Detroit artists. Visit www.artmuseumgr.org for more information.
Where are all the wolverines?
While Michigan is the Wolverine State there are actually no wolverines, outside of capitative that is, that live in the state. The last known Michigan wolverine is stuffed and in a private collection. It was killed in 1860. According to Michigan State University zoologist Rollin Baker, there may have been wolverines in the state as late as the 1900s, but most of what he found was hearsay. Some believe that wolverines, which most are living in the far mountains of Canada, were never populous in Michigan but rather a name given to the white settlers by Native Americans because they were gobbling up all the Michigan land. The animal was strongly disliked by the Native Americans because it often feeds on dead animals and humans.
