Grassroots Community Network

Speaker: Ray Mendez, biologist and naturalist Description: Travel with photographer, naturalist, and entomologist Ray Mendez on a journey of exploration into the recesses of one of his favorite places: Trinidad’s rainforest. Anting (using ants for feather cleaning) trogon birds will be among the fascinating jungle inhabitants discussed, as well as various mammals, reptiles and insects. Speaker Bio: Ray Mendez is a Manhattan native who started his career at the American Museum of Natural History in NYC. He first worked in the Department of Animal Behavior, next in Entomology as a taxonomist, and finally as Senior Artist in the Exhibits Department. After leaving the museum he started his own firm, Work As Play. His projects have ranged from the insect wrangler (he coined the phrase) to movies such as Silence of the Lambs to designing exhibits for museums and zoos all over the world, including the first two trash museums in the US. He also has worked on large theme park projects such as Disney’s Animal Kingdom