COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — The Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center in Colorado Springs hosted its first-ever Bug Day, giving families a free opportunity to see live insects up close.
The event, which ran from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., featured interactive activities and creatures like tarantulas and black widow spiders.
Attendees learned about the bugs that live in our own backyards, as well as their importance to different types of ecosystems in Colorado.
My favorite part is that like I got to see like tarantulas and I really never seen a tarantula because I only seen them in like videos. I never seen them like in person.
He doesn't always get the opportunity to hang out with bugs up close and personal like that, and he loves them ever so very much. So I think in a lot of ways it's good cause it teaches the kids that these are natural parts of our environment.
The visitor center teamed up with the following for the event:
- Butterfly Pavilion
- the Mile High Bug Club
- the Fountain Creek Watershed District
- the Colorado Springs Parks
- Recreation and Cultural Services Department
- animal ambassadors from the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
We're hoping to be a place that people can come and learn about their animals, the geology, their environment, and why it's so important to protect these things.
Organizers hope to make Bug Day an annual event and plan to host similar educational gatherings, including Earth Day and Bighorn Sheep Day.
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