Monkeys
I visited the Primate exhibition being hosted by the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. This originally opened back in 2016, but I didn’t manage to catch it then. It has since toured the world and is now back home until November this year. Entitled, Monkeys: Our Primate Family, there are more than fifty species on show, with the specimens all part of the museum’s own collection.
On entering the exhibition there is a sign stating that ‘All the taxidermy specimens are animals that have died naturally in captivity. No animals were harmed for this exhibition.’
I found it highly informative, though quite sobering at times. I had an idea there were many different species, but seeing them all grouped together was eye opening. Tragically, there are many that are close to extinction now, due to humans and the illegal trade in animal body parts, and the primates natural habitats being destroyed. An exhibition such as this does raise awareness about the natural world, and hopefully makes us think and helps us to make changes in our behaviour that can all help to make a difference. The displays make it clear that interconnectedness of the natural world means that actions here can impact on primates thousands of miles away. This is especially so as humans encroach on the primates’ habitats and they come more into contact with us.
Towards the end of the exhibition there is an interactive board with a number of threatened species, with many having only a few hundred left and some even less than that. There are good news stories of where action has resulted in bringing other species back from the brink, but there is so much work still to do.
Of other interest is an exhibit with viewing goggles, to illustrate how certain primates view the world in how they interpret colour or indeed the lack of it. The use of stone tools to crack open nuts, and using stems of grass to dig out insects from rock formations is also fascinating to learn about. I was also struck by the differences in size, from the grey mouse lemur that is only slightly bigger than the eye of the adult male western lowland gorilla.
As noted above, I found this exhibition highly informative and came away with a better sense of just how delicate the balance is between humans and the rest of the natural world. We are capable of improvement, and I hope exhibitions such as this play a part in helping to make it happen.