Natural History Museum of Los
Angeles County is trying to collect and inventory all of the region’s urban
wildlife, some of which hitched a ride to the metropolis
Rory Carroll in
Los Angeles
Friday 15 April 201600.46 BST
Last
modified on Friday 15 April 201615.53 BST
Los Angeles –
synonymous with cars, concrete and urban sprawl – turns out to possess a
secret, thriving underworld: nature.
A host of mammal, reptile, spider
and insect species has hitched a ride to the metropolis on planes and ships and
flourished in the balmy climate alongside native species, helping to turn LA
into one of the world’s most diverse ecosystems.
This little-known fact prompted
the Natural History Museum of Los
Angeles County on Thursday to launch an attempt to collect and
inventory all of the region’s urban wildlife – the world’s biggest urban
biodiversity study.
“We are truly surrounded by
nature at all times,” Lori Bettison-Varga, the museum’s president and director,
told a press conference ringed with scientists and jars containing slithering,
crawling examples.
“There’s often a misconception
that Los Angeles is a concrete jungle, when in reality the city is home to one
of the most diverse ecosystems in the world,” said Brian Brown, the museum’s
curator of entomology.
The museum is extending
scientific research and investigation beyond its 3.5-acre site by mobilising “citizen
scientists” who document and photograph wildlife in their homes, yards and
streets.
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