The Florida Museum of Natural History contains the jaws of several generations of sharks in the history of the world. These jaws range from 2-9 ft, and even includes the jaw of the largest shark that ever lived, the Megalodon. The exhibit captured my attention because I was taken aback by the sheer size of these massive creatures where their jaws alone stretched out more than my entire body. The exhibit taught me how much the world has changed and along with it the creatures that inhabit it over the course of millions of years. I enjoyed observing the jaws on Shark Jaw Row as well as the dozens of other fossils found throughout the museum, such as the mammoth and other life that have roamed the Earth because it showed me the variety of the creatures that have walked the same land that I have and how much we need to protect the world to avoid going extinct ourselves like these animals.

The Florida Museum of Natural History offers the opportunity to dive into the Butterfly Rainforest and immerse ourselves in their habitat. I believe it gives us the insight to be able to view ourselves as part of "the biotic community" as Leopold teaches. One can truly appreciate the delicateness of nature by standing in such a tranquil environment surrounded by such peaceful, beautiful and delicate creatures. I felt a sense of tranquility as I sat in the rainforest for almost an hour, mesmerized by the environment I was in. I was able to connect with them as the butterflies landed on my arm and walked across me as if I were just another tree. This experience taught me to be mindful of nature and not "conquer the land." I have been instilled with an ethical responsibility to protect nature and all of its inhabitants.

The Florida Museum of Natural History helps us step out of our ordinary lives and step into the lives of these underwater plants and animals.This exhibit helps us better understand who we are and appreciate the majesty of nature because it shrinks us down and transports to a world that is so vastly unexplored and most of us cannot see on a daily basis. It shows what it is like to be underwater, and the variety of organisms that thrive in these dark underwater areas. It uncovers the mystery of what is behind the seas of the rivers and oceans that most of us cannot see with our naked eye. I was fascinated by the opportunity to be shrunken down and taken to this magnificent world that is not my own.

Roye, Federico. "In the Shark Row Exhibit in the Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, FL." 2017. JPEG.

Roye, Federico. "In the Butterfly Rainforest Exhibit in the Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, FL." 2017. JPEG.

Roye, Federico. "In the Waterways and Wildlife Exhibit in the Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, FL." 2017. JPEG.