Rainforest in a Bubble
The California Academy of Sciences, located in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, is one of the world’s largest natural history museums. Among the many exhibits, the museum contains a remarkable 4-story rainforest housed in a dome. Inside the glass sphere, a spiral ramp allows visitors to explore the rainforest, starting on the ground and heading into the tops of the trees.
This Rainforests of the World exhibit features the flora and fauna of Indonesia, Costa Rica, and Madagascar. It’s no surprise that orchids abound. Here are pictures of a few examples: a Phalaenopsis species, an unusual Calanthe orchid from tropical Africa, and a jewel orchid with fascinating leaves. All enjoy the constant warm temperatures and high humidity inside the dome.
More than just a flower show, the exhibit provides an opportunity to see how orchids grow in the wild. The first photo in this next set shows how orchids grow as epiphytes, or air plants, along with bromeliads, ferns, and vines. By using their roots to hold on to trees, epiphytes take advantage of brighter light than they could receive on the shady forest floor. The 2nd photo shows an orchid attached to a branch. While some roots hold fast to the bark, others stick out in the humid air to catch moisture and nutrients. The 3rd photo shows orchids attached to a tree trunk. In the wild, the white roots hold on to the vertical surface, even in the face of strong winds and violent storms.
That’s a small sample of the flora, and here are some of the fauna. Butterflies pollinate some species of orchids in the wild. These beauties paused long enough for our cameras. In the final photo, the bright colors of a poison dart frog advertise its bad taste to predators. They all play their parts in complex webs of life of tropical rainforests, and also this remarkable rainforest in a bubble.
Explore posts in the same categories: Conservation, Misc, Orchids in the Wild, Photos, Warm Growers
Subscribe to the About Orchids Blog:
June 17th, 2009 at 10:20 am
Hey, nice post, really well written. You should write more about this.
June 17th, 2009 at 8:09 pm
[…] AboutOrchids Basic Orchid Care for Beginners AboutOrchids Home « Rainforest in a Bubble […]
August 25th, 2009 at 1:46 am
Wow!!! I’ve seen pictures of the Academy’s “green roof” on the news, but they didn’t show how brilliant it is inside! Thanks for the virtual tour.
August 27th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
[…] It’s a quick walk from the orchids at another shining jewel of the park, the Academy of Sciences. […]
September 1st, 2009 at 6:42 pm
I love those jewel orchid leaves. The lines look like there painted on.
October 13th, 2009 at 3:45 pm
Great pictures! I like the shots showing how orchids attach to branches. They show really clearly how they grow in the jungle with their roots holding on
November 12th, 2009 at 9:25 pm
I love it! It’s the world’s biggest terrariium! Your pics are great. I can really get a sense of how they constructed the whole thing and how large it is.
January 7th, 2010 at 9:05 pm
I just want too take some time too Thank everyone for doing what you do and make this community great im a long time reader and first time poster so i just wanted to say thanks.
January 11th, 2010 at 10:25 pm
[…] tree ferns are often rainforest companions with orchids, but the closest orchids to these are at the nearby Academy of Sciences and Conservatory of Flowers […]