Joe Kline / The Bulletin file photoPatrons look at an exhibit at the High Desert Museum in Bend in 2014.

Samantha Heyerman couldn’t understand why anyone would want to shoot a cougar.

But there it was, lying in front of the 5-year-old Bend resident Sunday at the High Desert Museum, surrounded by a series of cryptic clues that might be pieced together to pinpoint a culprit.

The cougar was a fake, part of a new exhibit at the museum called “Wildlife Forensics: Detection and Discovery in the Animal World.” The exhibit offers kids and adults a glimpse into the world of crimes against animals, and the forensic scientists who work to bring poachers and animal smugglers to justice.

Looking at different strands of animal hair through a microscope, Dylan Bolger, 11, was intrigued.

“It’s crazy how everything you do leaves a trace,” Bolger said.

The exhibit was inspired by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s forensic lab in Ashland, which solves crimes threatening wildlife around the world. The lab is the only one of its kind in the country. Before it opened in 1988, animal investigators had to rely mostly on witness testimony, which often is unreliable.

High Desert Museum guests Sunday tried to match a slew of animal tracks with their owner in one area, and looked at hair samples to try to spot the difference between a common goat, a rabbit and an endangered Tibetan Antelope in another.

A display case showed different products made from poached animals, things such as snakeskin belts and hair combs made from a sea turtle.

The cougar crime scene revealed several pieces of evidence — a bullet casing, a footprint, a discarded beer can — and asked guests to try to find all the different clues.

Parents, such as Marie Geitz of Portland, said they appreciated the thought-provoking exhibit.

Geitz and her son, Jacob, 8, were in Central Oregon visiting friends and decided to check out the museum. Many kids gathered around High Desert’s furrier attractions Sunday, such as the otter display and an up-close look at a porcupine.

But Geitz made a point of guiding Jacob through the forensics display, to see what impression it would make.

“It’s an engaging exhibit,” she said. “It’s always good when you can show kids how science affects the world.”

The animal forensics exhibit opened at the High Desert Museum this weekend and runs through June 8.

— Reporter: 541-617-7820, eglucklich@bendbulletin.com