Carnegie Museum of Natural History

One of the Four Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh

western pennsylvania

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Humans and Nature: River Otters

river otter specimen in We Are Nature

Usually, we hear about how human activity negatively impacts wildlife populations, but the inverse can also be true when conservationists make a concerted effort.

One local example is river otters in the state of Pennsylvania, which were in decline in the 20th century because of habitat destruction and river pollution. Conservationists recognized the problem and spent decades restoring their habitat and eventually reintroduced river otters in 1982. Their population have since thrived, and the project is heralded as one of the greatest success stories of modern conservancy.

Learn more about population rehabilitation in We Are Nature: Living in the Anthropocene, a new exhibition at Carnegie Museum of Natural History that explores the interconnectedness of humanity and nature in the Anthropocene.

The Anthropocene is the current geological era in which humans are making a profound impact on the geological strata. While the term itself is still being debated by geologists, the museum is embracing it as a social and cultural tool for exploring the broad sum effect humans are having on the planet in the exhibition We Are Nature: Living in the Anthropocene—open now through summer 2018.

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Allegheny River Ridge Wildlife

miniature reproduction of Cornplanter’s Grant

by Patrick McShea

Designers of museum exhibits, when they are successful, create interesting displays that convey important information and sustain multiple levels of interpretation. Occasionally, effective designs include the placement of some elements in locations certain to garner the attention of young museum visitors.

Within Alcoa Foundation Hall of American Indians, a highlight of the exhibition’s East quadrant is a detailed, miniature reproduction of Cornplanter’s Grant, a tract of Iroquois-owned land along the Allegheny River in northwestern Pennsylvania. The model landscape, which stretches from river edge to ridge crest, depicts activity on the tract in four distinct seasons of 1800.

The seasonal contrasts serve as an unwritten invitation to circle the historic domain. During such movements, visitors whose eye level approaches the ridge crest encounter depictions of fingernail-sized wildlife beneath the blaze of autumn foliage.

miniature black bear statues
miniature wildlife statues

Patrick McShea works in the Education and Visitor Experience department of Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Museum employees are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences and knowledge gained from working at the museum.

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Monarchs

Monarch Butterfly

Monarchs migrate farther than any other butterflies in the world– up to 3,000 miles and back. Milkweed is an important food source, especially for monarch caterpillars. Many other native wildflowers also provide nectar for adults along their migration route. In this Botany Hall diorama of Presque Isle, a monarch visits the flowers of the hairy puccoon (Lithospermum caroliniense). Presque Isle is the only known existing site in Pennsylvania with this plant species.

(photo by Hayley Pontia)