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Mount Kisco Kids Learn The Nature Of Things At Animal Education Program

MOUNT KISCO, N.Y. – Things soft, furry and slimy dazzled dozens of children at the Mount Kisco Library on Wednesday.

From left, Audrey, 10, Dean, 7, Myria and Matheo Albis, 1, attend the animal education program.

From left, Audrey, 10, Dean, 7, Myria and Matheo Albis, 1, attend the animal education program.

Photo Credit: Brian Donnelly
Leila, 2, pets a duck, which her father Chris said was her favorite animal of the day.

Leila, 2, pets a duck, which her father Chris said was her favorite animal of the day.

Photo Credit: Brian Donnelly
From left, Bianca, 5, Bryan, Nicole and Wyatt Weiss, 2, attend the animal education program.

From left, Bianca, 5, Bryan, Nicole and Wyatt Weiss, 2, attend the animal education program.

Photo Credit: Brian Donnelly

Deborah Mumford, a naturalist and director of The Nature of Things in North Salem, brought some of her animal friends to the Mount Kisco Library. Mumford grew up in Mount Kisco and came to the library often. She now lives in North Salem.

Audrey Albis, 10, of Somers, said the West African hedgehog was her favorite animal. Although, she said she liked everything about the hour-long program and learned a lot. The West African hedgehog is much smaller than the one native to England, Mumford said.

“How often do you get to see a hedgehog in real life?” asked her mother, Myria.

Audrey's’ brother Dean, 7, chimed in saying that the duck was his favorite.

“It was fun and I thought I learned a lot,” Albis said.

Bianca Weiss, 5 of Mount Kisco, said she most liked the monitor lizard, which her father, Bryan, said he remembered seeing when he was in fifth-grade.

“I thought it was great,” Bryan said. “It’s a good opportunity for the kids to get exposed to animals they don’t normally see.”

His father-in-law is Mount Kisco Mayor Michael Cindrich. Bryan and Nicole Weiss' younger child, Wyatt, 2, liked the hedgehog most.

The Nature of Things opened in 1982 and offers nature education programs to children and adults. Mumford told the story of their chinchilla, Stormy, whose great grandmother was an animal in The Nature of Things program 20 years ago. Stormy’s mother was shown in the education programs, too.

During one program years ago, Mumford took her out of the cage, only to find three baby chinchillas inside. She had Stormy and two other children during a program for local girl scouts.

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