The Audubon Zoo Discovery Walk recently opened an exhibit aiming to teach kids about the danger the Gulf oil spill is causing to the marine wildlife.

Kids participating in the exhibit get a chance to act like a volunteer clean-up crew at oil spill disasters. They suit up in a gown and a pair of gloves and go to work cleaning up plastic sea turtles covered in “oil” – a mixture of cocoa powder and vegetable oil. Afterwards, the kids watch a simulation of an oil spill clean up, which uses household items to stimulate boom and dispersants.

The Audubon Nature Institute has always had a special interest in sea turtles, so it was a natural choice for them. And according to the zoo’s employees, the kids have been asking questions- a lot of questions – about the oil spill in the Gulf.

About the Aububon Zoo Oil Spill Disasters Exhibit

The Audubon Zoo’s Discovery Walk employees hope that the hands-on approach of the exhibit will help children better understand the disaster happening in the Gulf region and the devastation it has caused on the marine wildlife, not just the sea turtles.

The Discovery Walk runs from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday, and the Audubon Zoo plans to keep the oil spill disasters exhibit open as long as the problems remain in the Gulf region.

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