Fascinating Educational Biodomes

Posted by
Rosemary Drisdelle
Jan 2, 2008

Biodomes are enclosed environments where scientists have created a specific environment that does not usually exist at that particular place. They populate it with plants and animals that are comfortable there, and provide the required temperature, humidity, light levels etc. on an ongoing basis. Ideally, a biodome works as a complete ecosystem, sustaining itself.

The Montreal Biodome is an example of a climate controlled enclosed ecosystem that successfully recreates four specific environments. The visitor gets to actually visit the different environments and see many plants and animals that live there (except in the case of the polar world, where one just looks in, through glass). What makes it so convincing is the sheer size of the place: there’s actually room for tropical birds to fly, for sloths to climb high into the towering trees, for whole schools of marine fish to come close to the glass and then disappear in the distant depths.

The freedom that the animals have to move around in natural surroundings—surroundings that people are moving through as well—and the size of the biodome, are also what set it apart from zoos and wildlife parks, and make it more educational. It’s well worth the price of admission: I’ll happily go again on my next visit to Montreal. And one day I’d love to visit the Eden Project, and even bigger series of biodomes in southwest England.