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Exhibitions

 

You won’t find exhibits like these anywhere else in New England. Comprehensive in scope, yet intimate in scale, the museum presents a rare glimpse at the exotic and a fresh look at the familiar.

Africa

Africa ExhibitVisitors will see impressive mounted specimens of African wildlife...

Arthropods: Creatures That Rule

Butterflies for Arthropod exhibitionFeaturing hands-on activities, dramatic specimen displays, colorful video and graphics, and even live animals, this exhibition draws on the latest...

Asia

Africa ExhibitThis gallery features mounted wildlife specimens from Asia. It includes a rare Indian rhinoceros, Siberian and Bengal tigers, and a cheetah.

Bees

Arthropods

This exhibit gives visitors a close-up look at the daily life of a colony. The bees will be on display until mid-November. 

Birds of the World

Birds of the worldBoasting over 10,000 species, birds are the most diverse land vertebrates on the planet, surpassing the biological diversity of...

Cenozoic Mammals

Cenozoic exhibitThe Cenozoic Era, also known as the Age of Mammals, was marked by the extinction of dinosaurs 65 million years ago.

Central and South America

Central and South America ExhibitThis gallery features mounted wildlife specimens from South America, including a jaguar, tapir, sloth, and giant armadillo...

Climate Change: Our Global Experiment

Climate ChangeExplore the past, present, and future of climate, engage with the new simulation globe, consider the facts, and draw your own conclusions.

Earth & Planetary Sciences

AmethistThis gallery displays thousands of rare minerals and sparkling gemstones in both rough and cut examples...

Evolution

Chimpanzee in Evolution exhibitThis exhibit invites visitors to examine the fossil, anatomical, and genetic evidence that all life is connected through a shared evolutionary history.

Glass Flowers

ArthropodsOne of the museum’s most famous treasures is the internationally acclaimed Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass...

Great Mammal Hall

Great Mammal HallThis historic gallery reflects the grand vision of the founder of Harvard's Museum of Comparative Zoology, Swiss zoologist and ...

Lily Simonson: Painting the Deep

Painting from Lily Simonson ExhibitThis new exhibit presents six original mural-sized paintings that literally glow with luminescent pigments and together create an immersive visual experience, giving form to a hidden alien universe.

Marine Life

Birds of the worldThis exhibit will immerse visitors in the astounding diversity and dynamic interplay among animals in marine communities just off local shores.

Microbial Life

Microbial Life Winogradsky Scott ChimileskiThis exhibit takes visitors on a journey into this fascinating, invisible realm, where bacteria and other microbes bustle about their lives, interacting with one another and with organisms of all sizes in every corner of the globe.

New England Forests

BearNew England Forests in the Zofnass Family Gallery is a multi-media exhibition that explores the natural history and ecology of our regional forests...

Orb-Weavers

Image for the Orb-Weavers exhibitThis special exhibit in the Arthropods Gallery that will examine the evolution of the orb web and explore how capture strategies used by its arachnid builders have shaped web design.

The Rockefeller Beetles

Rockefeller Beetles main exhibit pageOpening Saturday, October 20, The Rockefeller Beetles will feature hundreds of specimens from Rockefeller’s collection and recount the story of a man whose childhood pursuit grew into a lifelong passion.

Romer Hall of Vertebrate Paleontology

TriceratopsThis exhibition showcases the evolutionary history of vertebrates, including spectacularly preserved fishes, dinosaurs, and early mammals. 

Sea Creatures in Glass

Sea creatures in glassRenowned for their beauty and exacting detail, the Blaschka invertebrate models were commissioned by universities and museums...

 

Online Exhibitions

What's in a Name?

Photo of Lions Mane JellyfishThis exhibit includes four interactive kiosks embedded into existing exhibits. Explore how different organisms are named. Learn more on the What's in a Name website and download the free e-book.

Islands: Evolving in Isolation

Image of green lizardThis online exhibit is an exploration of evolution on islands that highlights the latest research and discoveries made by Harvard scientists.

Floor Plan