Your Monthly News & Updates |
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Our Mission
To ignite the natural curiosity of all learners to explore and shape their world
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Summer Adventure
Summer Adventure is almost here! Beginning June 1st you can visit Roper Mountain Tuesday-Thursday between 10AM-4PM. While you’re here you can encounter our new traveling exhibit “How People Make Things”, visit our new animatronic T-Rex on the outdoor dinosaur trails as well as the new prehistoric play area and Pirate themed play area. Make time to discover our Living History Farm, pet a stingray in the Marine Lab, make a trade at our Nature Exchange and so much more!
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Continue your children’s learning adventures in some of your favorite spaces at Roper Mountain! |
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- Explore the Environmental Science and Sustainability Building which is home to the highly popular Nature Exchange, Our Water Story, and the Sustainable Future exhibits.
- Search for life-size models of both young and adult dinosaurs along our outdoor Dinosaur Adventure Trail.
- Enjoy a stroll through our beautiful Butterfly Garden.
- Engage in creative outdoor play in Wildwood.
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Afternoon Explorations final day of the year will be May 12th.
Join us again on June 1st for Summer Adventure!
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Afternoon Explorations
First Friday
Check out this month’s First Friday feature! On May 5th, Harrison Hall of Natural Science will be open in addition to the regular access points of Afternoon Explorations to allow you to mix and mingle with your favorite animals!
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We have two NEW ways to earn points at Nature Exchange. Each Monday a mystery picture will be posted on Roper Mountain social media pages. Then for the rest of the week, bring your guesses into the Nature Exchange to earn extra points. We also hope you join us for Table Top Tuesday! You will have a chance to interact with science and earn points for Nature Exchange.
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Friday Starry Nights
Big Bird’s Adventure: One World, One Sky
May 5, 12, 19, 26
4:30 p.m.
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Friday Starry Nights
Oasis In Space
May 5, 12, 19, 26
6 p.m.
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Friday Starry Nights
NEW
Stars of the Pharaohs
May 5, 12, 19, 26
7:30 p.m.
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A few spots remain for our very popular summer camps! You can see what options are available by visiting our website to see what’s available:
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Spring has arrived and with it The Ecology Lab in Harrison Hall welcomes back brook trout in our Mountain Stream exhibit. Brook trout are native to the Eastern US, from the Great Lakes east to the Atlantic Coast, and down into the Appalachian mountains to Georgia. They inhabit high altitude streams that have fast moving, oxygen-rich cold water. Our trout came to us from the Walhalla State Fish Hatchery, where along with rainbow and brown trout, they are bred to be released into streams throughout South Carolina.
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While you are planning your summer visits to Roper Mountain plan on visiting our greenhouse Rainforest habitat in Harrison Hall. Our Rainforest contains dozens of species of plants that include ginger, coffee, cocoa, pineapple, cinnamon, papaya, and mango. While there make sure to pause for a moment and breathe in the fresh air. Outdoor air has a CO2 level of around 400 ppm, while our Rainforest has been measured as low as 320 ppm as the plants use the CO2 to produce oxygen.
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Do you know the difference between a snake fact versus a snake myth? Below are some highlights from my recent Living Upstate interview for WSPA. Most snakes are non-venomous. Of around 30 species of snakes found in our Upstate, only 3 are venomous and only one is common. Timber rattlesnakes and the Pigmy rattlesnake are uncommon in our Greenville area, whereas the Copperhead is our only common venomous snake. Copperheads can be identified by their dark dumbbell- or hourglass-shaped crossbands, that kind of look like Hershey kisses.
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These venomous snakes are pit vipers, with a deep heat-sensing pit between their eye (elliptical pupils) and nostril. Non-venomous snakes have round pupils and lack the heat-sensing pits. In our upstate area, we do not have the Cottonmouth or Water Moccasin. Our common Northern water snake is often mistaken for the cottonmouth. In the U.S., fewer than 10 venomous snake bites result in death. Also, as many as half of the bites by venomous snakes are mild or “dry” bites where little or no venom is injected.
To avoid bites, leave them alone! Maintain a safe distance and allow snakes to escape. The most common form of defense by a snake is avoidance. They usually only bite as a last resort or when frightened.
Visit us this summer when Summer Adventure starts in June and let us replace your fear of snakes with respect.
By Tim Taylor, Roper Mountain Life Science Specialist
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This month we spotlight one of our newest Community Partners, Contec, a global leader in contamination and control products and cleaning tools located in Spartanburg, as well as one of our oldest partners, BMW Manufacturing, that produces more than 1500 vehicles a day in their Spartanburg plant. |
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Thanks to partners like Contec and BMW, Roper Mountain has impacted almost 50,000 students this school year with hands-on, standards-based learning labs in physical science, earth science, life science, and engineering. |
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Thank you Contec and BMW for helping us ignite the natural curiosity of all learners to explore and shape their world! |
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Give Back to Roper Mountain
We appreciate your consideration in making a donation to support our mission to help lay the foundation for future successes for school and public programming. Make a gift to Roper Mountain today.
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Spread The Word About Roper Mountain
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THANK YOU COMMUNITY PARTNERS |
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Visionary:
Bosch Community Fund
Community Foundation of Greenville
The Daniel-Mickel Foundation
Dodge Industrial, Inc.
Duke Energy Foundation
Fluor Golf For Greenville
Greenville County Litter Prevention
Greenville Water
The Late Ernest and Betty Lathem
Lockheed Martin Corporation
MetroConnects
Piedmont Arthritis Clinic, PA
ReWa
South Carolina Farm Bureau
Explorer:
BMW Manufacturing
Fluor Foundation
GE
SEW Eurodrive
Voyager:
Tom and Linda Hamilton
South Carolina Charities
Miliken
Audacy
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Adventurer:
AFL Global
AT&T Foundation
Bank of Travelers Rest
Contec, Inc.
ScanSource Charitable Foundation
Hal and Minor Shaw
Innovator:
John R. and M. Margrite Davis Foundation
DC Blox
Greenville FCU
Greenville Master Gardeners
Rob and Katie Howell
Piedmont Natural Gas
Publix Super Market Charities
Ron and Tommie Reece
Barbara Stone Foundation
ZF North America
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We welcome your feedback. Email Roper Mountain to share your thoughts.
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