Regular visitors to the National Museum of Natural History would not have been surprised at the large crowds of small children last Saturday. On this particular day, however, crowds piled not into reliable favorites like the prehistoric gallery or the photography exhibit, but into a new permanent two-part exhibit: "Butterflies and Plants: Partners in Evolution," which opened Friday.
The new exhibit, housed on the second floor across from the gem and mineral collection, is divided into two sections: one a set of specimen displays and placards designed to show how insects and other animals co-evolved with plants, the other a heated pavilion filled with live butterflies.
The live butterflies are the obvious draw, and the specimen displays seem designed largely as a distraction for people waiting for entrance to the butterfly pavilion. The minimal presence of informational displays turns the exhibit into little more than a hallway to the entrance to the butterfly pavilion. However, many children seemed enthralled by colorful displays depicting the stages of a butterfly's life and read the descriptions of the specimens with interest.
For those no longer in elementary school, however, this section is much less stimulating. Placards saying things like "the caterpillars eat and eat and eat" and displays assuming no pre-existing knowledge of the process of evolution seem to show that this exhibit is intended for a younger crowd. To that end, the exhibit fulfills its purpose-younger children squealed in delight at the sight of preserved bats and learned, with the help of simplistic art and description accompanying preserved animals, about the idea of co-evolution.
To its credit, the specimen collection, though small, is of the quality to be expected of the Smithsonian. Children and parents alike stared in fascination and took cell phone pictures of artfully preserved insects.
The butterfly pavilion, which promises live interaction with butterflies, is a fun experience regardless of age. While educational descriptions of the butterfly species fluttering around are minimal-a stack of laminated cards that most patrons disregard-the majority of visitors seem more interested in getting a butterfly to land on them than in distinguishing between the insects.
Taking up most of the gallery space, this is the clear purpose of the exhibit. It drew a huge crowd-and huge lines. The museum's system of selling tickets for certain time slots proved ineffective, and the line stretched into other galleries. Waits upward of 45 minutes proved especially taxing for the parents of fidgety toddlers tugging on their leashes.
All in all, the exhibit is at least mildly educational and certainly a lot of fun. While perhaps not worth an entire excursion to the Mall, it certainly merits a detour during a visit to the Museum of Natural History and is a good place to take younger children. Those more entomologically minded, however, would be better served by passing through the butterfly exhibit and going straight through to the ironically titled Orkin Gallery, which features an impressive specimen collection and in-depth displays.
The Museum of Natural History is located at Independence Avenue and Sixth Street S.W. on the National Mall. It is open from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily.
