Academy Obtains New Big Cats

Five taxidermied big cats were moved into Phelps Science Center Sunday, the newest addition to a building that currently houses a humpback whale skeleton and an 800-gallon aquarium.Towering at over 6 feet tall, the big cats— two tigers, two cougars, and a lion— now located in the classrooms of science instructors Townley Chisholm and Michelle Chapman and in the biology lab—will give students the opportunity to study wildlife up close.The Academy obtained the big cats from Needham Science Museum in New Hampshire, facilitated by long-time benefactor Dave Taylor, who originally helped Exeter to acquire the whale skeleton. The museum decided to give the taxidermied creatures away for free because the tigers’ date of origin was unknown. The big cats originate from India, Africa and South America.Senior and Biology Club co-head Jackie Kim believed that the big cats would serve as a highlight of the science center. “We have a whale skeleton, and the tigers are like that but on a smaller scale. Now when we give tours to people, it’s another thing we can show them—probably no other prep school is going to have that in their classrooms,” she said.Chisholm hoped that the big cats would give a new perspective to the study of ecology.  “Having mounts of these large predators will allow our biology classes to talk about predator ecology in a more immediate, dramatic way. I’m hoping that students will reflect on the importance of keeping healthy, wild populations of these awesome animals,” he said.Science instructor Erik Janicki agreed. “I am really excited that the tigers are here, because  big cat conservation is one of the most critical issues facing conservation biologists today,” he said.Students reacted to the taxidermied animals frozen in different positions such as walking and even attacking with bared fangs with a mixture of shock and delight.“When I saw it I just couldn’t believe it, because they’re just so big. Although it doesn’t really have any effect on our academic studies it’s a really cool, unique, and inspiring addition to our classroom,” Kim said.Biology Club co-head Christina Savvides felt similarly. “It’s cool that the animals are able to be used for educational purposes after they’ve died,” she said. “To be honest, taxidermy freaks me out a little bit, but I think students will enjoy it: How often do you get to see tigers up close? It’s cool that the school has the resources to bring them here.”Some classes have already begun to interact with the big cats. “[Ms. Chapman] let us touch [the cats] and the fur was not as soft as I expected, which was cool. They’re a great visual addition to the classroom,” senior Flora Wang said.