Authorities from the National History Museum in London is planning to demolish a wildlife garden, which is the home of about 2,600 different species. This plan has sparked an outrage among scientists in the said attraction as the garden serves as a sanctuary for numerous wildlife creatures, including those that are already considered rare such as landhopper crustacean and the Jersey Tiger Moth.
The plan is to convert the place into a dinosaur zone, which will include a massive new habitat for Dippy, the Diplocodus. Dippy, as it is affectionately called, is the dinosaur skeleton cast, which has been one of the most popular sights in the museum. According to experts, more than 50 percent of the dozen individual habitats in the wildlife garden will have to be eradicated when the plan of installing a driveway that will run all the way to the middle of the site and will measure multiple meters wide, begins to push through.
The scientists, who have been with the museum throughout its 20-year stint think that the massive reconstruction of the garden is not in accordance to the philosophy of the museum. The plans released to the scientists so far look as if the project is more focused on providing an efficient pathway for a large crowd through the garden into the Darwin Center and other structures, instead of boosting the wildlife and strengthening interactions, says negotiator Mike Weiler. According to him, the museum officials are planning to dig up the creatures' habitats and place them somewhere else; however, he added that the academic literature provides diverse review at best of the fulfillment of this plan. The Wildlife Garden has grown over the last 20 years and it cannot be reintegrated overnight. The process of building the habitats of thousands of species took so many years.
The officials of the museum, state, however, that the restructuring plan will still have to undergo a consultation process and that a bigger wildlife reserve would be installed in the future. "The Museum is entering a decade of transformation and making better use of the available space," says a museum spokesperson. They plan to involve the outdoor areas of the museum in the entire educational and inspirational experience of their visitors.
The new design of the museum is fantastic and the implementing the changes will be an exciting break for the place, says Dr. Sandra Knapp, a scientist from the museum. Aside from it paving the way for more enhanced building access, the plans will also induce a better and more appealing introduction to the museum and its work, she adds.
The Wildlife Garden is currently the home of two micro-moths, whose species cannot be found anywhere else in Britain. Other living creatures than can be found in the garden include bats, frogs and toads. The animals have a chalk stream, wetland ponds and meadows to live in.
Photo: David Brossard | Flickr
