Biodiversity

The wonders of Biodiversity

Marvel at the variety of life through this online series of stories exploring what we mean when we talk about biodiversity. How do we categorise the natural world? What ways can we measure biodiversity? Why is biodiversity important, how it is changing over time, and where are we humans in it all?  

These online stories explore themes that have been introduced in twelve displays in the Museum’s centre court. Hundreds of specimens have been installed revealing the diversity of life, as we know it. Here, we invite you to take a deeper dive with multimedia resources that take a key specimen from each display and discover more on the themes that informed the exhibits. 

What is Biodiversity?

View the six stories below to discover more about ways we describe biodiversity when talking about living things today and in the past. Each story is stand alone, but you can also read them in the order presented below to follow a taxonomic journey that starts with the whole Tree of Life before zooming in through the taxonomic layers. Exploring physical markers of biodiversity that include size in arthropods, colour in insects, shells forms in molluscs, and the variety of spikes, fur, and feathers that vertebrates have evolved. 

Why is Biodiversity important?

View the stories below to discover more about ways we can increase our understanding of biodiversity in the past and present, and to ensure a biodiverse future.  

Find out more about the challenges of recording biodiversity, the importance of understanding relational nature of the natural world, and what we mean when we talk of extinction. Discover how we humans are part of the natural world and why biodiversity is also in our hands.