In the Natural History Museum

 Last month I went to the Natural History Museum in Chapultepec Park to see a special "ofrenda" that was on display in an exhibition hall there.   After seeing the "ofrenda", I decided that I might as well take a look at rest of the place and check off another one of the city's 150 museums.

The Natural History Museum is currently undergoing a complete renovation, and only a portion of the museum is currently open.  I can't say that natural history museums are my favorites, and, even after the renovation is complete, I doubt very much that Mexico's City's will rank as one of the greatest in the world.  I doubt that it will even be comparable to the natural history museum in Cleveland.  However, in spite of the that, the remodeled section that I saw was quite nice, and I found myself spending more time there than I had expected. 

As you enter, the first section of the museum is devoted to evolution.

The hall is dominated by a replica of a dinosaur from the Jurassic Age.

The dinosaur is a casting of the diplodocus carnegii which is at the Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh.  This replica was given as a gift to the Mexican people in 1928 by the widow of Andrew Carnegie.

Next are exhibits on the different forms of animal life.

Finally, a number of dioramas portray different ecosystems of Mexico.  Although Mexico takes up only 1.4% of the planet's surface, it is home to 10% of earth's biodiversity.

The scrub desert of Baja California

The cactus desert of Tehuacán, Puebla

The conifer and oak forest of Chihuahua

The tropical rainforest of Chiapas

The cloud forest of Chiapas

Although the museum is certainly not one of Mexico City's premier attractions, when the renovation is finished sometime next year, I will probably visit again.