Boy Scouts grades 6 & up

Snooze at the Zoo

Amphibian and Reptile Merit Badge

Boy Scouts—here is your chance to complete some activities towards your Reptile and Amphibian Study Merit Badge and sleep at the Zoo!

You will spend the night at the Zoo—a time when everyone else has gone home (except the animals). Scouts will work on their Reptile and Amphibian Study Merit Badge while having an overnight adventure at the Saint Louis Zoo! Scouts will rotate through four different workshops which will give scouts the opportunity to complete the following activities: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9a, 9b, and 10. Merit Badge counselors will be on hand to approve scouts’ merit badge cards. Scouts that have cared for or observed a reptile/amphibian before the overnight program may bring their journal for review by a merit badge councilor.

The evening portion of overnight programs includes an evening pizza snack (with a soft drink), rotations through four exciting activities including a live animal encounter, our famous night hike and a flashlight exploration of the Herpetarium. The morning portion of the overnight adventure includes a continental breakfast, a morning stroll around Zoo grounds to see the animals wake-up, a souvenir Zoo patch and glow-in-the-dark overnight cup!

Who Registers: Boy Scout packs/dens with scout or adult leaders or individual Boy Scouts with a parent or guardian
Limited to 90 participants
Fee: $35/person

Insect Study Merit Badge Programs

Are you working on your Insect Study Merit Badge? If so, we have the programs for you. You can choose one or all three of these after-school programs.

Who registers: Boy Scouts
Fee: $10 per scout
Maximum of 60 scouts

Intro to Insects

This after-school program will introduce you to the amazing and fascinating world of insects. This introductory class is great for scouts who are just beginning their Insect Study Merit Badge. By observing some of our insect collection, we will learn how to distinguish insects from other invertebrates, what part insects play in local food chains and much more. This program will help scouts to complete requirements: 1, 2, 6, 8, 9 and 11.

Insect Orders C - E

Scouts will dive into the world of classification and identification. We will take an in-depth look at the orders: Coleoptera, Dermaptera, Diptera, and Ephemeroptera. We will learn how to identify these orders, provide ideas about where to find them in the wild and learn cool facts about some of the families within these orders. This program will help scouts to complete requirement 4.

Insect Orders H - O

Scouts will continue their study of classification and identification with orders Hemiptera, Homoptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, and Odonata. We will focus on key features of each order and a few common families within these orders. We will conclude this series by providing tips on how to create your insect collection. This program will help scouts to compete requirement 4.

To register for a Boy Scout badge program, please print and complete a Boy Scout Badge Registration form (31K pdf).
For registration questions please contact the Education Department at (314) 646-4544 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. or e-mail at educationquestions@stlzoo.org.

For more information about these programs please contact Keri Lanning, Overnight Programs Coordinator at (314) 646-4614 or e-mail at lanning@stlzoo.org.

Tours

The Zoo's Education Department offers tours seven days a week from September through May, unless otherwise noted. Tours are offered at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2 p.m.

Grades 4 - 6

Grasslands
Deserts
Polar Adaptations
Classification
The River's Edge
Endangered Species
Web of Life
Rainforest

Grades 7 - 12

Taxonomy
Endangered Species Research Center & Veterinary Hospital
Conservation

See Educational Tours for details and registration information.

Classes

Magnificent Missouri Wildlife

This 45-minute program explores Missouri wildlife through classroom presentation and contact with live animals. Classes available year round. Click on link above for more details.