September 2024 – Fall 2026
The Houston Botanic Garden invites visitors to explore the uniqueness and importance of the natural environment in the exhibition Habitat, in which a dozen thematic sections explore the central idea “protecting habitats protects life” through the lens of the environment where each is displayed.
Habitats provide homes for all living things, from the tiniest ant to the tallest tree. Plants, animals, and other organisms have adapted to each other and their habitats over time, creating a delicate ecological balance. This balance faces many threats, including pollution, deforestation, and climate change, but humans can protect habitats for the future by learning to be better stewards of the environment.
The exhibit invites visitors to learn more about topics related to habitats, their importance to life, and what people can do to help preserve them. Some sections explore the critical role that many organisms play in creating and sustaining habitats. Others present different ecosystems, explain how scientists study them, and provide steps everyone can take to best protect them.
Critical Questions
Habitats are homes.
- What is in a habitat?
- What roles do habitats play?
- What makes a successful habitat?
Habitats are interconnected and fragile.
- How are habitats interconnected?
- What are the biggest threats facing habitats?
- How do humans impact habitats?
- How do habitats adapt?
Habitats need to be protected.
- Why should we protect habitats?
- How do we create habitats?
- How do we conserve habitats?
- How do we restore habitats?
Key Messages
Biomes
Plants and animals have adapted to survive in specific biomes (communities of plants and animals occupying a major habitat), and their interconnected relationships keep ecosystems in balance.
Bug B&B
Humans can help build and restore habitats for beneficial wildlife.
Dead Wood is Life
Dead wood is a fragile, crucial habitat, home to diverse species, interconnected to sustainable ecosystems that need human protection.
Foundation of the Sea
Foundation species are fundamental to the structure and resilience of habitats.
Habitat of Flight
Human innovation has been inspired by the environment.
Homes
Embrace a little messiness and a home garden can become a rich habitat for wildlife.
Key to the Forest
Without its keystone species, an ecosystem would be dramatically different or cease to exist altogether.
Life Underground
A successful habitat is a fragile, often invisible, interconnection between species, and needs human protection.
Monarchs & Prairies
Protecting and cultivating local native plants are essential to maintaining habitats.
Nests
Nests reflect the resources available in a habitat and the needs of the home builder.
Sheltering Branches
Ecological and cultural narratives demonstrate that habitats are a protective space.
Sign of the Dragonfly
Indicator species demonstrate the interconnectivity of species within habitats.
