AMNH Presents LIFE AT THE LIMITS: STORIES OF AMAZING SPECIES, Now thru 1/3

Life at the Limits: Stories of Amazing Species reaveals the diverse and sometimes jaw-dropping strategies animals and plants use to reproduce, find food, sense the world around them, and thrive in inhospitable habitats.

Life-size and larger-than-life models, live animals, videos, and interactive exhibits throughout Life at the Limits highlight a variety of 'superpowers' across the tree of life. Featured species include tardigrades, microscopic animals that can survive dehydration and extreme temperatures; elephant seals, which can hold their breath for up to two hours as they dive for food; birds that dance; beetles that shoot explosive chemicals at enemies; and lizards that squirt blood from their eyes to scare off predators. A gallery devoted to life inside caves showcases a variety of animals-leeches that appear to have legs, fish that use their fins to "climb" rocks, and others-that have adapted to low-light environments in similar ways, losing sight and pigment while evolving long limbs and enhanced sensory abilities.

Live animals on display include the surprisingly powerful mantis shrimp, which strikes prey at speeds that can shatter shells; the highly mobile nautilus; and the axolotl, an aquatic salamander that can regenerate limbs.

The exhibition opens to the public today, April 4, 2015, and is on view through January 3, 2015.

American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street.

Admission to the Museum and the exhibition is $27 for adults, $16 for children, and $22 for seniors and students. For tickets, the public should call 212-769-5200 or visit www.amnh.org.

Photo Credit: © NPS/J. Peaco