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Summer Reading Program activities began at the Demopolis Public Library on Tuesday, June 6 with a presentation from Animal Tales.

Animal Tales provide professional live animal educational programs through highly skilled and experienced presenters. The program doesn’t simply lecture, but involves the crowd to help facilitate memorable learning experiences.

Animal Tales handler John Ham, brought in several different animals from around the world, the first of which was a Mexican red-knee tarantula named Charlotte. This type of tarantula is very docile and is often kept as pets by arachnids’ lovers. The next animal Ham presented was a Giant African Bullfrog, the second largest frog in the world behind the Goliath Frog of Guinea and Cameroon in West Africa.

The following animals were an Egyptian Fruit Bat, a South American Chinchilla, and an Australian Carpet python. The most popular animal of the show, however, was an Australian Laughing Kookaburra. The well-trained bird remained perched on Ham’s arm throughout the end of his presentation and showcased the laugh-like call that makes this bird species famous. Ham said the Kookaburra is also known as “the Bushman’s alarm clock” because the birds often vocalize at dawn and dusk.

Ham shared fun and safety facts about the animals and what children (and adults) should do if they come across one of these animals in their natural habitats. He also discussed how some of the animals like the Mexican tarantula and the chinchilla are endangered in the wild, with about roughly 10,000 chinchillas remaining in the mountains of Chile.

The next activities for the Demopolis Public Library’s Summer Reading Program are Butterfly house crafting on Tuesday, June 13 at 2:00 p.m. and Mr. Bond’s Science guys Wednesday, June 14 at 2:30 p.m.