ADVANCE SCHEDULE OF EXHIBITIONS AND PROGRAMS AT THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

The Butterfly Conservatory:Tropical Butterflies Alive in Winter

October 10, 2009–May 31, 2010

This exhibition, first presented in 1998 and now an annual favorite, features up to 500 live, free-flying tropical butterflies from the Americas, Africa, and Asia. The butterflies are housed in a vivarium that approximates their natural habitat and includes live flowering plants that serve as nectar sources; has controlled artificial light, temperature, and humidity; and measures more than 60 feet long, 21 feet wide, and 10 feet high. Among the species included in the vivarium are iridescent blue morpho butterflies,striking scarlet swallowtails, and large owl butterflies. Text panels located immediately outside the vivarium offer information about the evolution and life cycle of butterflies, including sections on mimicry, diversity, and butterflies’ important role in conservation.

Whitney MemorialHall of Oceanic Birds, second floor

Highway of An Empire: TheGreat Inca Road

October 17, 2009–September 2010

The vast Inca Empire owed its reach and power to an extensive and intricate network of roads. Linking forts, religious sites, and administrative centers from the Pacific coast to the Amazonian rainforest, the Inca roads allowed armies and imperial officials to conquer and then control the largest empire in theAmericas. In this series of stunning photos,Highway of An Empirereveals the diversity of this road system—from broad paved highways to woven suspension bridges to beaten tracks through barren desert—and the diversity of landscape it criss-crosses.IMAX Corridor, first floor

Courtesy of Consulate General ofPeruinNew York.

Traveling theSilk Road: Ancient Pathway to the Modern World

November 14, 2009–August 16, 2010

This intriguing and exotic exhibition will transport visitors back to one of the greatest trading routes in human history, showcasing the goods, peoples, technologies, and cultures from four representative cities: Xi’an, China’s Tang Dynasty capital; Turfan, a verdant oasis and trading outpost along the silk road; Samarkand, home of prosperous merchants who thrived on the caravan trade; and Baghdad, a fertile hub of commerce and scholarship that became the intellectual center of the era.

Visitors will embark on an unparalleled journey exploring commerce, communication, and cultural exchange from the far reaches ofChinathrough the cities and empires of Central andWest Asiafrom AD 600 to 1200. Children will become world travelers as well, collecting special stamps inSil
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