Free Admission

Be immersed in the Florida Museum of Natural History’s collections with a look at 14 high-resolution photographs that showcase rare museum objects not often in public view. Their stories inspire and inform about the state of our natural world, touching on topics like invasive species, habitat loss and the work of researchers to preserve plants and animals that call the Sunshine State home. Step back in time 25,000 years — when Florida was home to giant Columbian mammoths — by viewing an image of a skull and tusks. Gaze upon the wonderful art created by Seminole peoples and learn about their cultural practices. And you can take an up-close look at some of the objects pictured in this engaging gallery, as some are on display in the museum’s exhibits.

The gallery showcases 14 breathtaking images of plants, animals, fossils and cultural heritage materials from the museum’s collections along with a copy of the book “All Things Beautiful: Wonders from the Collections of the Florida Museum of Natural History.” ©Florida Museum/Kristen Grace

In 1968, scuba diving museum paleontologists found this skull, complete with jawbones, teeth and tusks, on the sandy bed of north Florida’s Aucilla River. This specimen is currently on display in the museum’s central gallery. ©Florida Museum/Kristen Grace

This beautifully patterned animal is a natural hybrid between an eastern kingsnake and a speckled Florida kingsnake, found on Paynes Prairie near Gainesville 60 years ago. ©Florida Museum/Kristen Grace

Highlights

Into the Collections:

Fourteen images of plants, animals, fossils and cultural heritage materials from the museum’s collections showcase their beauty and importance as well as the distinctive biodiversity of the Sunshine State.

All Things Beautiful:

Take a peek at the award-winning book, “All Things Beautiful: Wonders from the Collections of the Florida Museum of Natural History,” containing images of more than 300 objects. The book is also available for purchase at the museum’s Collectors Shop or online at the University Press of Florida website.

Did You Know?

• The Florida Museum is the state’s archive for skeletons and pelts of 300 wild panthers that died naturally or in accidents.
• Florida has more than 200 plant species that exist nowhere else in the world, the most of any state east of the Mississippi River.
• The endangered Schaus’ swallowtail butterfly population was reduced to only a handful of individuals in 1992 before museum scientists hand-reared them from near extinction. There are nearly 2,000 butterflies today.
  

  Acknowledgements

Images by Kristen Grace, text by Heather Dewar. This exhibit was originally developed for exhibition at The Studios of Key West alongside the 2024 Key West Literary Seminar titled “Florida: The State We’re In” and was repurposed for display at the Florida Museum.