MUSEUM'S TRIBUTE TO THE UNTAMED; WILDLIFE FROZEN IN TIME.

Byline: Jesse Hiestand Daily News Staff Writer

The Fillmore Museum of Natural History is the last refuge for some of nature's most fascinating and fearsome creatures.

African elephants, lions, deer and a bald eagle - all stuffed and mounted - bear silent tribute to mankind's need to control the untamed.

And to changing tastes.

``They've all been donated to us in the last year and a half,'' museum director Karl Anderson said of the nearly 300 animal trophies on display.

``A lot of kids and grandkids of these hunters don't see value in these things. In some circles it's not politically correct,'' he said. ``But the gentlemen who hunted these animals don't want to see them thrown in a Dumpster, and we appreciate their educational value.''

Still and staring, the mounts leave the museum eerily quiet - save for the occasional screech of an African gray parrot or the gurgling of the aquarium that is home to a trio of Vietnamese water snakes.

Most of the museum's 68 live animals are snakes or other reptiles - all of which have been devenomed - from a deadly black mamba to a 21-foot python named Frenchy. The collection also includes coral, sea shells, butterflies and other gems of nature on display in a former Central Avenue supermarket.

The museum opened in July with a $98,000 loan from city officials eager to draw tourists to their town.

``We are attempting to provide a wide variety of activities for those tourists when they get here,'' said City Manager Roy Payne. ``We have a train, a winery, a gorgeous downtown, a traditional town square - and now the museum.''

Both Payne and Councilman Roger Campbell applaud Anderson for getting the museum up and running in less than a year on what they admit was a shoestring budget.

``It's an incredibly short period of time,'' Campbell said. ``Maybe we jumped the gun, but I think it was very important to let the young people see it.''

The museum is a work in progress with an uncovered concrete floor and two unfinished dioramas where mounted animals will be shown in a faux natural setting.

Anderson estimates he will need $130,000 more to finish the museum - money he hopes will come from corporate donations.

City officials have pledged long-term support, agreeing to waive repayment of the loan if the museum stays open longer than 10 years.

``When it is complete, it will be spectacular,'' Campbell said. ``I believe it will be one of the top attractions in Ventura County. The educational value to students in Fillmore - and, really, the whole county - is what is important.''

Born in Eugene, Ore., Anderson grew up in Azusa and served four years in the Navy before pursuing zoology and photojournalism at California State University, Los Angeles.

Anderson was still a student in the late 1970s when he started taking wild animals into youngsters' classrooms during his spare time.

``I've always loved sharing animals with children,'' he said, ``each of them like an individual sponge willing to absorb any information you can give.''

Sympathy for the much-maligned wolf prompted Anderson to form Guardians of the Wolves in 1990. The advocacy group grew quickly and had members in 13 states and Europe within two years, he said.

Anderson formed another group in 1990 while trapping and relocating raccoons for Oregon's Department of Fish and Wildlife.

``One day, I was sitting there in the shade, an adult raccoon in a cage in the back of my truck, and a woman who was probably 75 or 80 years old came up and asked if it was a weasel,'' Anderson said. ``I was shocked. Who doesn't know what a raccoon is? It's one of the most common mammals in North America. And I thought, if this woman doesn't know what a raccoon is, what are the chances her children would know what it is?''

Fired up to resume wildlife education, Anderson said he drew together biologists, scientists and teachers and formed the nonprofit Wildlife Educators of Oregon in 1991.

``Our ultimate mission was to foster a greater awareness of our natural world through educational programs and experiences,'' he said. ``We stressed that wild animals do not make good pets.''

Anderson eventually took the curriculum he'd developed and formed Wildlife Educators of America, which now has chapters in six states.

``We believe a greater appreciation of these wild animals by our youth is the key to our survival,'' he said. ``We can have all the laws in the world to save these animals, but the real salvation is going to come through a change in attitude.''

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PHOTO (color in Simi edition only) Karl Anderson, director of the Fillmore Museum of Natural History, points to an elephant.

Tom Mendoza/Daily News