Amazing Pollinators
On exhibit from October 1, 2021, to January 2, 2022
Get your game on and transform into bees, bats, and butterflies in the vibrant world of the Amazing Pollinators. The centrepiece of the exhibit is a visually stunning, playable maze. Hundreds of beautiful interactive flowers are spread across nine environments like lotus flowers in the rainforest, saguaro cactus in the desert, and moon flowers glowing in the black-lit night room, just for nocturnal pollinators. Tickets available here.
In the maze, visitors can take on 36 survival missions from six different pollinator groups, including bats, bees, beetles, birds, butterflies, and wasps. There are six missions for each group that increase in complexity and difficulty, putting players in the shoes of different species like the hibiscus bee, soldier beetle or ruby-throated hummingbird.
To succeed, players have to think like a pollinator and navigate the many challenges faced by each pollinator on a daily basis. If players manage to survive the missions, they earn exclusive titles and are rewarded with finding out about some rather bizarre relationships between plants and pollinators, how pollinators support our ecosystems, and the vital role they play in our food supply.
The exhibit also features graphics and interactives with information on how to help pollinators at home and in the community, as well as an opportunity for guests to build their own powerful pollinator. The game parlour includes classic games with a twist, like mason bee mancala, invasive species shuffleboard, mutualism dominoes, and more. In the “Maze Flower Quest” area, younger children may participate in mini-missions by choosing a pollinator and flying it to its target flower in the maze.
Pollinators truly are vital to our everyday lives. Not only do they support our own food supply, but they are critical to natural ecosystems and wildlife. What better way to find out just how important pollinators are than to join the buzz and get in on the action at the Amazing Pollinators exhibit. The Amazing Pollinators exhibit was created by Minotaur Mazes, in collaboration with the Florida Museum and the Xerces Society.