Photos by Daniel Dibnah
In addition to hosting traveling museum exhibits, a huge model train display, water play area and various other fun and educational activities for children, the Discovery Center houses a variety of animals.
Discovery Center’s Animal Specialist Emmie Enochs, who graduated from UT Martin with a degree in wildlife resources management, provides daily care, entertainment and exercise to the animal residents of the Discovery Center. She also creates as many animal programs as she can to educate and entertain attendees of the museum. Enochs recently introduced some of the critters to the Pulse.
Pemberton – Great Horned Owl
Pemberton was caught in a barbed wire fence and broke a wing. She was rehabilitated at Walden’s Puddle, before coming to the Discovery Center. Her daily diet consists of a large frozen rat. She’s approximately nine years old and can live up to 25 years. Great Horned Owls are the sassiest of the birds of prey, according to Enochs.
Bill – Ball Python
At 19 years old, Bill is one of the oldest animals in the center and is approximately eight pounds of solid muscle. She has been around since the old Discovery Center building, and is now beginning to form cataracts. A ball python can live up to 30 years.
Panzer – Leopard Tortoise
Panzer has lived at Discovery Center about 12 years. She is a vegetarian whose diet consists mostly of mixed salad greens. She can live up to 100 years!
Waffles – Rabbit
A local family purchased Waffles as a 2016 Easter bunny for photos then brought him to the Discovery Center. He eats mostly Timothy hay and oats, but his favorite treats are Cheerios and carrots.
Rex – Bearded Dragon
Rex the bearded dragon is 16 years old.
Bud – Eastern Box Turtle
Bud was hit by a car, and after surgery at Premier VetCare in Smyrna will live out his days at the Discovery Center. Due to his injuries he can’t go back into the wild.
Frida – Hedgehog
Frida eats a high protein diet and prefers cat food over mealworms.
Stanley – Ferret
Stanley was acquired from Pet City in 2017 when the Nashville Predators were in the running for the Stanley Cup.
Bird – Eurasian Collared Dove
Bird loves to coo and came to the Discovery Center as an education aid.
Fluffy – Common Snapping Turtle
The Discovery Center team is unsure of Fluffy’s age, but she’s been around since the current building has been in use. She has a daily diet of “turtle muffin,” which consist of sardines, mackerel and spinach held together with gelatin.
Rosie – Chilean Rose Tarantula
Adopted from a pet store as an education aid she’s approximately three years old. Tarantulas can live up to eight years. Her diet consists mostly of crickets, which she likes to drown before eating.
Discovery Center at Murfree Spring is located at 502 SE Broad St. They also host events for big kids such as Wine at the Wetlands, Shakesbeer and the Secret Garden Tour.
For more information, visit explorethedc.org.
