We know filming in the wild can be deadly: Just ask the Grizzly Man or the Crocodile Hunter. But what do these animals actually do when we aren’t around to observe them? The Museum of Animal Perspectives is working to learn the answer to this question. Three months ago, Sam Easterson, a video artist, began surfing the 'net for videos that scientists had posted of animal behavior in the wild. So far, Easterson's collection of critter-cam videos includes a black bear, a raccoon, an Asian elephant, a moose, and an Amazon red squirrel. The footage gives you the illusion that you are there, actually spying on these creatures. Currently, the most popular videos are the Patagonian conure, the bald eagle, and the oh so cute owl. The Scientist reports:
Log on to the site, and you'll see the Dwelling Cams Gallery page—a Google map with pointers at some 25 locations around the world. Each one takes viewers to a video of an animal kicking back in its own home—be they birds called Patagonian conures hanging out in their cliff burrows in Argentina), an eastern mole inspecting his tunnel in Indiana, or something more mundane, like brook trout spawning in Ontario, Canada.
Needless to say, the videos are pretty entertaining. One DISCOVER editor admitted she "was at a party on Saturday and the armadillo cam was a major topic of conversation. The snuffling makes it oh so excellent."
Image: flickr/ hockey.lover
