In the heyday of diorama construction in the first part of this century, the Museum sent artists and scientists to the field in order to capture the exact texture and color of the scene to be reproduced.

The species accounts on these pages are keyed to particular diorama stops in the museum. These accounts are thumbnail sketches about animals at risk: who they are and where they live, how they are threatened, and what can be done to improve their chances of survival.

The dioramas that form the core of this tour are internationally famous for their realism, accuracy, and artistic workmanship. They are also full of endangered, threatened, and (in some cases) extinct animals. You may wonder how we acquired these animals in the first place, and why they are still on display. Almost all of the mounted specimens that you see in the galleries were collected by Museum personnel or associates in the opening decades of this century, specifically for presentation in dioramas.

And, yes, it was recognized at the time that many of the species being collected were fast disappearing. However, it was also perceived that the Museum's mission was to present nature before it was irrecoverably changed. To fulfill this mission, specific kinds of collecting were required, which included the taking of specimens of animals that subsequently became endangered. (It is to be noted that scientific collecting of this sort involves the collection of very few specimens, and cannot in itself be considered a cause of endangerment.)

Today, the Museum's mission remains the same -- to present and interpret the natural world -- although animals are no longer collected without any concern for their risk status. The dioramas are still central to this purpose. They provide exquisite windows on a world that is still there, or could be found again, if we could learn to live within nature's limits.