Zoo Boise Skull Identification: Building Bridges - Connecting Scientific Analysis to Public Education Through Mammalian Skulls

Animal skulls tell us a lot about an animal’s lifestyle and are commonly used for educational displays to inspire public interest. In mammals, features such as teeth, jaws, and cranial morphology provide markers for feeding habits and ecological roles. In this project, mammalogy students partnered with Boise Zoo to identify unknown skulls using dichotomous keys to research unique skull features and functions. The goal of skull identification is to inform and educate the Zoo Boise visitors on the traits found in particular skulls and how researchers can make deductions about the animal’s lifestyle. The product of this work will follow interpretive education best practices and be used in interpretive interactions at the zoo. We present our knowledge and findings using an interpretive display to help the zoo and its visitors gain insight into the organisms that they may encounter during their visit. The results will give us a better understanding of how the skull’s physical traits connect to their families and provide interesting information that will help visitors learn about the diversity of animal families in a more hands-on way.