UNIVERSITY OF OREGON MUSEUM OF NATURAL AND CULTURAL HISTORY · SPRING / SUMMER 2018

PROGRAM GUIDE

Thanks to our event partners: Cascades Raptor Center, Claim 52 Brewing, Forests Today and Forever, Friends of Trees, McKenzie Watershed Council, Middle Fork Willamette Watershed Council, Red Five Hotdog Co, Travel Lane County, Oregon Institute of Marine Biology’s Charleston Marine Life Center, plus more partners to come!

We’ve teamed up with some of the area’s “splashiest” organizationsto help you get ready for a summer of water adventures! From waterfallhikes to wild river floats to coastal expeditions, come celebrateOregon’s diverse watery wonders—and the vital role that water playsin our everyday lives.

Make a splash this summer!

Summer SolsticeCelebration

$5 general admission. Admission is free with a non-perishable food donation ( per person ) to FOOD for Lane County.

Thursday, June 21st5:00 to 8:00 p.m.

SAVETHE

DATE!

❋Explore the Smithsonian Institution exhibit H2O Today

❋Enjoy live Hawaiian music by ‘Olekona

❋Sample beers with Claim 52 Brewing

❋Booths, food, crafts, and more!

❋Learn more at natural-history.uoregon.edu

We are open Tuesday through Sunday, 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Exhibits

1680 East 15th Avenue, Eugene, Oregon · 541-346-3024 · natural-history.uoregon.edu

NAVIGATINGKNOWLEDGEA Journey Through Museum Collections Glimpse into the vaults with University of Oregon researchers and join their ongoing investigations: You’ll traverse land and sea to uncover life’s origins, voyage across the Pacific in search of the First Americans, discover how fossils can predict earthquakes, explore arts in Africa and the Americas, and more.

H2O TODAYAn exhibit from the Smithsonian Institution

Traveling Exhibition Service

H20 Today is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and adapted from an exhibition organized by the American Museum of Natural History, New York (www.amnh.org).

Dive into the essential nature of water, our planet’s lifeblood. H20 Today blends interactive displays from the Smithsonian Institution with scientific research happening right here at the University of Oregon—inspiring creative conversations about Earth’s water sources and how we can steward them well into the future.

Family and Community ProgramsS P R I N G FA M I LY D AY

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Little Wonders is included with the price of admission and free for MNCH members. Families presenting EBT cards are admitted at a reduced rate through the Museums for All program. Visit our website for details.

stories andactivities forpreschoolers

second Friday

of the month10:30 a.m.

LEARN AND PLAY! You and your child are invited to join us for stories, crafts, and tons of hands-on fun— with a new theme each month.

MAY 11What’s the Weather?

JUNE 8Awesome

OceanAnimals

JULY 13Investigating

Insects

Bring the family and embark on a voyage of discovery. From monkeys and maps to fossils and folklore, you’ll explore amazing objects in our newest exhibit, Navigating Knowledge: A Journey Through Museum Collections—while games, scavenger hunts, and trivia await you at stops along the way!

Snacks provided. Included with regular admission; half-price admission for families presenting EBT cards; free for MNCH members.

Treasures

Vault

14,000 years of Oregon stories—from the First Americans at Paisley Caves to the dynamic cultures of today’s Tribes.

OREGON—WHERE PAST IS PRESENT

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EXPLORE OREGONDiscover the giant sabertooth salmon and other amazing animals from Oregon’s past, and take part in a dialogue about climate, conservation, and our future.

300 million years of Northwest natural history

from the

Join the museum’s outreach team for a family-friendly science adventure at your local library! All MNCH library programs are free and open to the public.

OREGON ROCKS!

JUNE 27 | 11:00 a.m. Creswell Library

JULY 31 | 1:30 p.m. Fern Ridge Library

AUGUST 6 | 6:30 p.m. Springfield Library

AUGUST 8 | 11:00 a.m. Bethel Branch Library

AUGUST 8 | 2:00 p.m. Sheldon Branch Library

AUGUST 8 | 2:30 p.m. Cottage Grove Library

AUGUST 22 | 12:30 p.m. Junction City Library

Dig into rocks, fossils, earthquakes, and volcanoes–and discover Earth’s dynamic landscapes.

MOVE LIKE A MAMMOTH! MAY 15 | 6:30 p.m. Sheldon Branch Library

MAY 22 | 6:30 p.m. Bethel Branch Library

Get in motion and discover how Oregon’s ancient animals swam, leaped, and ate their way through the deep past.

Coming SoonTO A LIBRARY NEAR YOU!

We are open Tuesday through Sunday, 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.1680 East 15th Avenue, Eugene, Oregon · 541-346-3024 · natural-history.uoregon.edu

Programs for Adults Programs for Adults

NAVIGATINGKNOWLEDGE

IllustratedCurator Talks

Thursday, May 10 | 3:00 p.m. In the Eye of the Beholder: Symmetry and Attractiveness in Monkeys with Frances White

Wednesday, May 23 | 3:00 p.m. The Mapas Project: Indigenous Pictorial Manuscripts of Early Mexico with Stephanie Wood

This season’s curator talks are presented in connection with our newest

exhibit, Navigating Knowledge: A Journey Through Museum Collections.

The talks take place at the museum and are included with regular

admission; they’re free for MNCH members and UO ID card holders.

Join us for a summerscience adventure!

Space is limited and preregistration is required. Visit our website to register or learn more. Science excursions are $55 per person; $45 for MNCH members. Transportation from the museum is provided. Wear comfortable shoes and outdoor clothing, and bring a lunch.

FORT ROCK CAVE TOURThursday, June 28 | 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

In 1938, UO excavations at Fort Rock Cave uncovered dozens of sagebrush bark sandals from beneath a layer of ancient volcanic ash. Today, the 10,000-year-old sandals remain the world’s oldest known footwear, putting Oregon’s Great Basin on the map as a key region in the story of the First Americans. Join us for a special, small-group excursion to this National Heritage site and explore the area’s deep human history.

FOSSIL FINDING ON THE OREGON COASTWednesday, July 18 | 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Investigate the natural history and fossil record of the beautiful Oregon Coast. Led by MNCH paleontologist Edward Davis, we’ll explore the dunes in Florence and look for fossils on Beverly Beach near Newport.

COASTAL GEOLOGYSaturday, August 4 | 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Explore the amazing landscapes and geology of the Oregon Coast with Marli Miller, UO geologist and author of Roadside Geology of Oregon. The group will travel from Eugene to the central Oregon Coast, examining fascinating rock formations all along the way.

IDEAS ON TAP

Ideas On Tap returns in the fall with a new lineup of thought-provoking conversations.

BehindScenes

Ever wonder what the MNCH has in its collections?Curious about the research happening in our labs?Here’s your chance to go behind the scenes! Explore rare artifacts and fossils, and learn about new insights stemming from museum research. The tour will include visits to multiple collections and lab facilities around the University of Oregon campus.

THEV I S I T I N G R E S E A R C H E R TA L K

$25 per person; $20 for MNCH members. Space is limited and preregistration is required. Wear comfortable shoes and bring a lunch and water bottle. Visit natural-history.uoregon.edu toregister or learn more.

Volcanic Architecture:Exploring the Roots ofMount St. Helens 38 YEARS AGO, Mount St. Helens produced the largest and most destructive volcanic eruption in recorded U.S. history. Recently, an interdisciplinary team of scientists converged on the volcano to image its magmatic plumbing system. Join University of New Mexico geophysicist and GeoPRISMS Distinguished Lecturer Brandon Schmandt to learn about the project—and the forces it revealed within Mount St. Helens. Included with regular museum admission; free for MNCH members and UO ID card holders.

TUESDAY, MAY 8 • 3:00 P.M.

Noteworthy NewsWe’re delighted to recognize Coos Bay’s Marshfield High School with the 2018 Oregon Stewardship Award. The $1000 award honors the great work that Marshfield students, educators, and community partners are doing to steward the Marshfield Pioneer Cemetery. The region’s primary burial ground from 1880 through 1920, the cemetery is home to roughly 2,000 graves including those of Tribal leaders and some of the area’s first European American settlers. Nearly 100 veterans are buried there, 60 of whom served in the Civil War. Over the years, the cemetery fell victim to neglect and vandalism and was eventually closed to the public save for two days a year. But in 2003, Marshfield students began to take an interest in the site, recognizing it as an important

historical resource. Today, students have transformed the cemetery with new fencing, headstones for previously unmarked veterans’ graves, and signage and interpretive panels. Project leader Cricket Soules calls the site a unique learning laboratory that provides students with academic and skill-building opportunities spanning local history, landscaping, event planning, and more. Launched this year by the Museum Advisory Council, the MNCH’s Oregon Stewardship Award recognizes an individual or organization that has engaged its community in an environmental or cultural heritage project that aligns with the museum’s mission to inspire stewardship of Oregon’s collective past, present, and future.

Students from the MHS Native American Youth Association prepare the plot of Coos Tribal Chief Daloose Jackson prior to planting native kinnikkinnik as a ground cover.

P U B C O N V E R S A T I O N S

Join UO anthropologist Frances White, curator of the museum’s Grand Primate Collection, for an exploration of the relationships between appearance and mate selection among nonhuman primates.

Congratulations, Marshfield High School!Winners of the Oregon Stewardship Award

Mesoamerican mapas document Indigenous communities’histories and relationships with place. Join UO researcherStephanie Wood for a discussion of the nature andevolution of mapas during 300 years of Spanish occupation—and learn how the UO’s Wired Humanities Project isexpanding digital access to these key cultural resources.

AT THEMUSEUM THIS

MONTH!

Tuesday, July 10 • 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 2 · 6:00 p.m.Taco Bowls and Drinko de Mayo: Mock Celebrations of Mexican Culture in Occupied America—with UO associate professor Analisa TaylorIn the museum’s galleria | Free admission

We are open Tuesday through Sunday, 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

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1680 East 15th Avenue, Eugene, Oregon · 541-346-3024 · natural-history.uoregon.edu

May 2018 July 2018

June 2018

Ideas On Tap6:00 p.m.

Free First Friday

Mount St. Helens talk3:00 p.m.

Navigating Knowledge talk: Monkeys — 3:00 p.m.

Little Wonders10:30 a.m.

Voyage Through the Vaults family day 11:00 a.m.— 3:00 p.m.

Mount Pisgah Wildflower Festival10:00 a.m.— 5:00 p.m.

Navigating Knowledge talk: Mapas — 3:00 p.m.

Historic Preservation Month Fair, 11:00 a.m.— 1:00 p.m., Oregon State Capitol

Registration is open now for our weeklong August summer camps. Spaces are limited and filling quickly. Secure your child’s spot today. Visit our website for details and to register.

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Free First Friday

Little Wonders10:30 a.m.

UO flute studio concert — 12:00 p.m.

UO CommencementMUSEUM OPEN

Summer Solstice Celebration5:00 — 8:00 p.m.

Excursion: Fort Rock Cave8:00 a.m.— 6:30 p.m.

Free First Friday

Independence DayMUSEUM OPEN

Behind the Scenes tour9:00 a.m.— 3:00 p.m.

Little Wonders10:30 a.m.

Excursion: Fossil Finding on the Coast9:00 a.m.— 5:00 p.m.

STEM Festival11:00 a.m.— 8:00 p.m.Lane Cty. Fairgrounds

Willamalane Children’s Celebration10:00 a.m.— 2:00 p.m.Island Park

WE’RE TAKING THE MUSEUM ON THE ROAD ALL SUMMER LONG!

attheMUSEUM

Join the flute studio from the University of Oregon’s School of Music and Dance for a classical concert in the museum’s galleria. Enjoy chamber duets, trios, quartets, as well as a large flute ensemble. Included with museum admission; free for members and UO ID card holders.

musicUO FluteStudio ConcertSaturday, June 912:00 — 1:30 p.m.

Join us at the

Festival Join us at the

Fair!This month, the museum takes part in theMount Pisgah Wildflower and Music Festivalin Eugene (www.mountpisgaharboretum.com) and the Historic Preservation Month Fair in Salem (www.oregon.gov/oprd). Come check out our booths!

Join usfor our Move Like a Mammoth! and Oregon Rocks! programs at a library near you. For times, locations, and other details, visit our website or check out this guide’s Family and Community Programs page.

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Free First Friday

Excursion: Coastal Geology8:00 a.m.– 6:00 p.m.

SUMMER CAMP / ASPIRING SCIENTISTSAUGUST 6 – 10

Little Wonders10:30 a.m.

NOT YET AMEMBER?

Visit our website to learn about the rewards of MNCH membership—from exclusive events and museum store discounts to admission deals at partner museums around the world.

NATUR AL-HISTORY.UOREGON.EDU

SUMMER CAMP / WATER WORLDAUGUST 13 – 17

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SUMMERCELEBRATIONSin Eugene /Springfield

This month, visit our booths for hands- on science and more at the Lane County

Fair STEM Festival (atthefair.com) and the Willamalane Children’s Celebration

(willamalane.org).

2018 SUMMER CAMPSDIG INTO SCIENCE!

1680 East 15th Avenue, Eugene, Oregon · 541-346-3024 · natural-history.uoregon.edu

NonprofitOrganizationU.S. PostagePAIDEugene ORPermit No. 63

The University of Oregon is an equal-opportunity, affirmative-action institution committed to cultural diversity and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. This publication will be made available in accessible formats upon request. Accommodations for people with disabilities will be provided if requested in advance. © 2018 Museum of Natural and Cultural History

VISIT OUR WEBSITEnatural-history.uoregon.edu• Events• Exhibits• Opportunities

Museum of Natural and Cultural History1224 University of Oregon

Eugene OR 97403-1224

Sandal Societysupports mammothundertaking

Retallack investigates mammoth footprint at Fossil Lake

On a 2014 hunt for fossil plants in south central Oregon, MNCH paleontologist Greg Retallack and his students stumbled across something big—mammoth-size, to be exact. Noticing a set of impressions in the volcanic soil at Fossil Lake, Retallack suspected they could be footprints of Ice Age Columbian mammoths, and he resolved to return to the site for a full investigation. He turned to the museum’s Sandal Society for help. Comprised of supporters who make gifts to the museum of $1000 or more, the

Sandal Society votes annually on projects to fund—from field research to K12 outreach to digitizing archaeological collections. The society promptly awarded Retallack $12,000 to carry out the project. Along with researchers from the Bureau of Land Management and University of Louisiana, Retallack conducted the excavation last year and recently published the findings. The team identified 117 impressions, dated to about 43,000 years ago, that are thought to represent footprints of adult, juvenile, and infant mammoths.

Through the study, the team gained fascinating insight into mammoth family dynamics. One set of tracks looked to belong to a injured adult—one tended by two younger members of the herd. “The juveniles may have been interacting with a limping adult female, returning to her repeatedly throughout the journey, possibly out of concern for her slow progress,” Retallack said. “It’s amazing to see this kind of interaction preserved in the fossil record.” Amazing indeed, and not just to paleontologists. The international media

response has been tremendous. A press release issued after the study’s publication garnered nearly 9,000 media views in just three days, making it the most viewed UO press release so far in 2017-18. To date, the story has been covered by more than a dozen major media outlets, including such widely read publications as Smithsonian Magazine, Daily Mail UK, and the International Business Times. We’re deeply grateful to the Sandal Society for its generous support of the study and its help shining a bright spotlight on scientific research at the MNCH.