The trip to the American Museum of Natural History has been an incredibly eye opening experience in terms of just how climate change impacts different areas of Earth. I was particularly compelled by the information and visuals given about the coral reefs. In the whale room which specifies on different ecosystems affected by climate change, there was a discussion of the rapid decline of reefs. Not only are coral reefs incredibly hindered by climate change, they also record the climate from the time and place lived. The display discussed the state of reefs in the past and why they should be protected. There is a photo of scuba divers collecting samples in the eastern Pacific Ocean, around a coral colony called Porites lobata. It grew between the years 1937 and 1994, and the organism was able to explain happenings throughout at least 10 El Nino events. The front of the display has many animals that benefit and depend on the reefs, and also provides information on how they operate through that particular ecosystem. It was visually pleasing to see schools of fish and other life size animals against a coral reef. They expanded on unique processes including cleaning stations fish use and sex changes. The front of the display states “Why protect coral reefs?” which I found to catch my attention. On the top, a quote by Charles Darwin is exhibited.
“Every one must be struck with astonishment, when he first beholds one of these vast rings of coral-rock, often many breakers of an ocean never at rest.”
What is painful to witness is when the AMNH made comparative analysis about what the reefs used to be versus now. It is clever the way they explained facts on irreversible effects that is both alarming and devastating. This is a productive method to audience members as it shows the gravity of climate change declining ecosystems at a rapid pace. There is a common negligence of being attentive to environmental challenges, and our society is calculated to believe that someone else will take care of any issues. A disconnect from the natural world results in a lack of comprehension for how dependent humans are on natural resources. Particularly the absence of coral reefs would be an exponential hindrance for sustaining human populations. Though entire reefs have been able stand resilient against climate change, they are simultaneously sensitive to their surrounding ocean waters. They have become vulnerable and receptive to wreckage which has more so been a reflection on how much oxygen levels in the ocean have changed. The museum has deeply touched me and makes me want to further my search on how to educate myself and contribute to protective action. AMHS through visuals and digestible information leaves me at a feeling of loss, which is a good way to get people to care about our changing planet.