See how they run and much more with ‘Nature’s Ultimate Machines’ at the Natural History Museum of Utah

Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Jordan Knox, left, and Esther Danso from Emerson Elementary School in Salt Lake City watch an exhibit about how different animals walk at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, February, 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive.

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) An exhibit about maintaining body heat shows the photographer in an infrared image at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive.

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) A display examining the ways animals of different sizes maintain their body temperature at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. It's part of Nature's Ultimate Machines, the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive.

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune)

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Students from Emerson Elementary School interact with an exhibit at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018.

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Eric DeLaPaz from Emerson Elementary School feverishly flaps a

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) The entry into at the Utah Museum of Natural History's

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Lindsay Reeder shows children from from Emerson Elementary School in Salt Lake City a display showing the different ways animals walk, part of a new exhibit at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018.

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Emerson Elementary School children at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018.

Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Children from Emerson Elementary School in Salt Lake City interact with an exhibit showing how different animals move at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, February, 7, 2018.

(Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) A small fox is shown inside a display showing the different adaptations animals have made for survival, part of a new exhibition at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2018.

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Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Jordan Knox, left, and Esther Danso from Emerson Elementary School in Salt Lake City watch an exhibit about how different animals walk at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, February, 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) An exhibit about maintaining body heat shows the photographer in an infrared image at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) A display examining the ways animals of different sizes maintain their body temperature at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. It's part of Nature's Ultimate Machines, the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Nature's Ultimate Machines is a new UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. A preview was held at the Utah Museum of Natural History on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2018. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Students from Emerson Elementary School interact with an exhibit at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Eric DeLaPaz from Emerson Elementary School feverishly flaps a wing in order to make his chair rotate as he experiences what it takes to make a bird fly, part of a new exhibit at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) The entry into at the Utah Museum of Natural History's Nature's Ultimate Machines, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Lindsay Reeder shows children from from Emerson Elementary School in Salt Lake City a display showing the different ways animals walk, part of a new exhibit at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Emerson Elementary School children at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb., 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is a new UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Children from Emerson Elementary School in Salt Lake City interact with an exhibit showing how different animals move at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, February, 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive. (Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) A small fox is shown inside a display showing the different adaptations animals have made for survival, part of a new exhibition at the Utah Museum of Natural History, Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2018. Nature's Ultimate Machines is the UMNH special exhibition exploring the workings of plants and animals and how they rely on finely-tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive.

By The Salt Lake Tribune

· 17 hours ago

Jaws that crush more than 8,000 pounds and ears that act as air conditioners. These are just some of the workings of plants and animals explored in the Natural History Museum of Utah’s new special exhibition, “Nature’s Ultimate Machines,” opening Saturday.

The exhibit features more than 130 specimens, to-scale models, interactive displays and biomimicry innovations to illustrate the great diversity of biological designs, and how plants and animals rely on finely tuned natural devices to move, adapt and survive.

“If you’ve ever wondered why a woodpecker never gets a headache or how fleas can jump so high, Nature’s Ultimate Machine has the answers,” Sarah George, museum executive director, said in a news release. “The entire exhibit is an exploration of how living things work on the inside and even explores where scientists get their inspiration to create prosthetic limbs.”

The exhibit runs through Sept. 3. For hours and ticket information, visit nhmu.utah.edu/ultimate.