Biodiversity and Environmental Halls at the American Museum of Natural History

This hall recreates a walk through a New York State forest over four seasons. You’ll find native animals, plants, and landscapes in realistic settings, highlighting how ecosystems change throughout the year. It's both scenic and educational, showing the richness of local environments.

• Featured exhibits: Seasonal diorama of a New York forest, From Field to Lake, A geologic map of New York State 

Learn about the planet’s rich and diverse life and why there is an urgent need to preserve it. The walk-through installation features over 1,500 specimens in the Spectrum of Life wall, showing organisms across different ecosystems.

• Featured exhibits: Spectrum of Life wall, rainforest diorama, Siberian tiger and dodo exhibits, the Endangered Species exhibit

Dedicated to forests across the continent, the Hall of North American Forests showcases how forests grow, change, and support wildlife. From the redwoods of California to Appalachian maple groves, you’ll get a chance to see forest ecology up close.

• Featured exhibits: Giant Sequoia tree cross-section, forest floor diorama

This iconic hall is home to the 94-foot blue whale model hanging from the ceiling. It explores marine biodiversity and ocean ecosystems, with life-size models of sea creatures and informative panels about their behavior and importance.

• Featured exhibits: Blue whale model, Bahamian coral reef diorama from the 1920s, deep-sea creature dioramas