Secrets of the Mermaid's Purse: Skates & Rays of the Mid-Atlantic

 
This exhibit is located off of the lobby area of the museum. Here you can see the flattened cousins of the shark that are located in our local waters. We have skates and rays in this exhibit. Supervised touching may be permitted at the discretion of the staff. One of the main differences between skates and rays is that rays give live birth to babies referred to as pups, and skates lay egg cases, better known as a "mermaid purse". You will have the chance to see the developmental stages of the egg cases in a second, smaller live exhibit, and be able to test your knowledge on skates and rays by taking the touch screen quiz (hint: all answers are found in the graphics). Trained docents are on hand to answer all your questions about these cousins of the shark!