Long Term Exhibits
TEXAS WILD:
ECOLOGY ILLUSTRATED
It's refreshed and updated ... and looking better than it has in 30 years. Come see the native wildlife of Texas.
Visit Texas Wild to see how an animal’s appearance and behavior are related to where it lives. How many animals have camouflage (colors that blend with their surroundings)? Discover the adaptations that allow predators (hunters) to find their food. This exhibit also includes Animals Alive! an area filled with live animals, including bees, spiders, and snakes. |
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DINOSAURS: VANISHED TEXANS
We're Updating
the Dino Hall
Come see what's new! |
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Be a dinosaur detective
Paleontologists (dinosaur scientists) use fossils like those in the Dinosaur Gallery to find out more about dinosaurs. View the Triceratops and the Tyrannosaurus Rex. Discover what you can tell by looking at teeth—which of these dinosaurs ate meat, which ate plants? Compare your foot size with a full-size dino footprint.
ANCIENT TEXANS: ROCK ART & LIFEWAYS ALONG THE LOWER PECOS
Travel through time
Ancient Texans tells the story of the people who lived in west Texas along the Pecos River thousands of years ago.
Discover how modern archaeologists learned about this hunting and gathering society through the tools and objects they left behind. |
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MUMMIES: UNWRAPPING THE PAST
Piece together history
Unwrapping the Past to find out how people lived in Egypt thousands of years ago. Was the mummy a man or a woman? How did scientists learn about the mummy without unwrapping it?
How does this relate to South Texas? The University of Texas Health Science Center did a scientific study on this mummy to unravel the mysteries about it. You will learn what they learned.
Hands-on activities include building a pyramid wall and assembling pottery shards. |
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H-E-B SCIENCE TREEHOUSE
Science for the fun of it
Science is all about asking questions and then experimenting.
The H-E-B Science Treehouse offers four-levels of fun and experimentation with simple machines, LASERs, sound, electricity, air, and weather.
Small World Science offers a chance for young children and chaperones to explore science too!
Daily science demonstrations are offered in the Treehouse basement. |
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WORLD OF WATER: TAKE IT TO THE RIVER
EXPLORE the environment
of the SAN ANTONIO RIVER
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River Alive! Investigate the tiny invertebrates that live in river water.
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H-E-B Science Treehouse Find out what lives in the river with the help of an underwater camera.
Discover where the San Antonio River starts, where it goes and why it changes color.
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Little Treehouse Identify many of the plants and animals that live near the Witte.
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Witte WaterWorks Put water to work for you and experiment with the technology used to move and divert water.
DON’T MISS the Archimedes Screw, an ancient tool used to move water uphill, still used today.
See more of Take It to the River
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Located in and around the H-E-B Science Treehouse,
Take It to the River, is full of hands-on fun.
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LOG CABINS & HISTORIC HOMES
Old San Antonio in the backyard
The Witte’s backyard has historic houses from all over San Antonio. Walk around the homes to see what materials were used to build each one. Then try to build a your own log cabin in the hands-on “little log cabin.” Only the log cabins are open to visitors—the other houses are used for staff offices and museum programs.
- The Ruiz House was the home of the city’s first schoolmaster,
- The Twohig House was built in 1841 by John Twohig, an Irish
- The Navarro House was built in 1835 by Jose Antonio Navarro,
- The Log Cabin was constructed in 1939 by 30 youths participating in
President Roosevelt’s National Youth Administration program. The “dog
trot” style cabin represents the type of cabin built by many Texas pioneers.
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