Anchorage, Alaska

Alaska Resources Library and Information Services

This Alaskan library may be the only one in the country that allows you to check out pieces of taxidermy.

Sure you can check out books on natural history, but why just read about animals when you can take them home and look at them in the (admittedly dead) flesh? At the Alaska Resources Library and Information Services (ARLIS), you can do just that, checking out pieces from their collection of taxidermy animals.

Located in Anchorage, the library is set up to provide as comprehensive a collection of information and resources about Alaska’s natural world. They are devoted to educating visitors about the state’s precious resources and wildlife. The library holds over 250,000 titles, hundreds of print journals, and a number of research databases devoted to such Alaska-centric interests like fish migration, mining, and the Iditarod.

In addition to the traditional library materials, ARLIS is mainly notable for its wide array of taxidermy animals which can be checked out for two weeks at a time. Birds, fish, otters, and more are all available to loan, sent out in clear plastic boxes so that they are not damaged by being loaned out. All of the animals are of course, native to Alaska. A collection of furs and skulls is also available to rent, free of charge.

This probably is not the library for those minor criminals who enjoy returning library books late, as the late fees are probably much steeper.