Animals are an endless source of entertainment and education for adults and children alike. We study their behavior, inspect their habitats, observe them in zoos and campaign to save them from extinction. Some cultures even worship them, anthropomorphize them and domesticate them.
But nothing is as fascinating as learning about animals being themselves, doing what comes naturally.
Two CD-ROMs, now on the market, are wonderful tools to help kids and grownups recognize hundreds of species and find out just what makes them tick.
The first, “Wide World of Animals” from Creative Wonders, is a comprehensive animal encyclopedia that uses a 3-D globe as a point of reference for finding out which animals live where and why.
Here, you have lots of options for studying the 700 species included in the program, which is set to a kind of New Age/nature soundtrack. When the “Animal World” screen appears, you can search for an animal by category (fish, mammal), by name from a list (barracuda, lion) or you can type in the name of the animal you want to learn about.
Immediately, a datacard pops up with a color photo of the animal and lots of accompanying information. You hear the sounds it typically makes, read text describing its habits, scan scientific stats about its class, order, family and species as well as find out whether it is endangered, threatened or vulnerable.
In “Wide World,” there also is a biome section that shows the plant and climate conditions that characterize an animal’s habitat — which you also can view in the form of a biorama.
Taxonomy charts, timelapse screens and lots of navigational and zoom buttons help you move through the program with ease. And for teachers, a guide and lab packets are available.
There is even a game that has the user answer multiple choice trivia questions about animals. Correct answers earn miles that accumulate until there are enough to help the user circumnavigate the globe and return home. A red line grows with miles earned and shows progress made. There is a glossary of terms, on-line help and a browser that lets you get familiar with the program’s options.
But perhaps the most impressive feature of “Wide World” is the seamless, non-preachy way it weaves information about ecology throughout the program. “Wide World” leaves no doubt that the environment plays a big part in the survival of all living things.
“Wide World of Animals,” Creative Wonders, Win 3.1/Win 95, $49.95. Rating: (star) (star) (star) (star) (out of four stars).
Interactive bird-watching
Another animal-related CD-ROM program, the “National Audubon Society’s Interactive CD-ROM Guide to North American Birds,” is for serious bird watchers, though kids with an interest in birds probably will find something interesting here too.
Like “Wide World,” “Birds” has an ecology component that allows exploration of various birds’ habitats and life zones. It is scored with an environmental “soundscape” that includes the sounds one might hear in the field or forest.
But it is the bird section that makes this program an invaluable guide for bird hobbyists. Users can test their bird identification skills through five criteria — size, shape, color, location and season and life zones. Click on one of those and birds in that category appear on the screen.
Click on a bird name from any of the accompanying lists and you get a full screen photo, common name in English or the Latin genus and species. Click on the audio button and you can hear the bird’s call.
There is an impressive amount of information on this CD-ROM — 2,100 color photos of 723 species and 62 habitats; bird calls for nearly 700 species, texts from 13 books, including the “National Audubon Society Field Guides to North American Birds” and tests that sharpen bird identification skills through visual or audio cues.
A notebook lets users create lists to record birds seen in the field and gives information to plan trips to popular birding sites.
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“National Audubon Society Interactive CD-ROM to North American Birds,” Knopf New Media, Win 3.1/Win95/Mac, $56.95 (includes free Audubon Pocket Guide). Rating: (star) (star) .
