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National Museum of Natural History

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Five Facts About the Smithsonian’s Sprawling Whale Collection That Will Blow Your Mind

This World Whale Day, take a look inside of the National Museum of Natural History’s whale bone repository

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2022 in Review: The Year’s Top Discoveries by Museum Researchers

An Ichthyosaur graveyard, oyster middens and other headline-grabbing findings by scientists at the National Museum of Natural History

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How Leafcutter Ants and Other Culinary Creatures Prepare a Feast

Celebrate Thanksgiving with some of the animal kingdom’s greatest cooks, including marshmallow-roasting apes and salt-sprinkling monkeys

A group of several bison with dark fur traverses a light green colored landscape of grasslands as rays of late afternoon light stream through several gold-tinged clouds. In the distance are more bison and the horizon is framed by distant mountains.

For the Love of the Buffalo

The celebration of America's National Mammal brings up both a dark past and a brighter future thanks to the Smithsonian’s conservation work

A big-eared, large-nosed, frown-mouthed furry grey and white medium-sized animal sits in the "v" of a small tree, holding one of the branches. In front of the animal is a woman with black hair wearing business clothes and smiling as she snaps a selfie.

Meet the Smithsonian Scientist Unlocking Crucial Conservation Clues in the Genetic Code of Koalas

For Save the Koala Day, learn how conservation geneticist Rebecca Johnson’s work helps protect these iconic marsupials

A fruit bat with large, dark eyes, big ears and light brown fur wraps its gray wings around a tree branch.

To Uncover the Origins of Diseases, Smithsonian Researchers Dust Bat Specimens for Viral Fingerprints

Smithsonian scientists utilize a new formula to extract fragile genetic data from bats collected decades ago

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Four Reasons Why There Is More to the Hummingbird Than Meets the Eye

This National Hummingbird Day, learn the buzz about these bizarre and beautiful birds

A black-and-orange orchard oriole perches on a bright red flower and uses its beak to peck at the petals.

A Bird in the Hand: How a Smithsonian Zoologist Spent the Pandemic Tracking Nectar-Robbing Orioles

During the pandemic shutdown, Gary Graves discovered his next research project in his own backyard

A small, tan fox with large, pointed pink ears blends into its sand-colored enclosure at the Smithsonian National Zoo.

Five Wild Ways Animals Beat the Summer Heat

As we enter the dog days of August, learn how several animals stay cool

An orange and tan Megalodon hangs over the museum's food court with its supersized mouth agape.

Diving with Sharks Through Deep Time

Celebrate Shark Week by meeting some of the prehistoric sharks prowling the museum’s collection

Several grey, white and orange king penguins perch on top of their eggs, which are snuggly sheltered under a flap of their flabby skin between their feet.

Get To Know the Natural World’s Most Devoted Dads

Celebrate Father’s Day with pudgy penguins, karate-kicking frogs and other dependable animal dads

Pages and jars of preserved plant specimens cover a counter in the foreground while cabinets full of pages of preserved plants line the background.

Iconic Photos Give Rare Glimpse of Smithsonian's Storage Rooms

Director Kirk Johnson explains what goes on behind the scenes at the world’s largest natural history museum

A diver uses a camera to study a barnacle-covered submarine resting on the seafloor

How Shipwrecks Shape the Seafloor

Sunken vessels can influence the structure, chemistry and biology of marine ecosystems, even decades after they occur

Baby turtles emerge and scatter from a small hole in the sand

Meet Some of the Animal World’s Marvelous Moms

Celebrate Mother’s Day by exploring how five species look after their little ones

Close-up of a black and yellow hornet preserved on a pin

What Mummified Shrews and Giant Hornets Reveal About Biodiversity

Celebrate Earth Day by revisiting stories about the museum’s research on a bevy of bizarre and wonderful creatures

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Meet Seven Species Named After Musicians

On the eve of the Grammy Awards, learn how scientists sing the praises of their favorite musical artists in the names of ants, snakes, flies and more

A bat hangs upside-down on a thin branch during the day. Green leaves line the frame of the photo.

Real Bats Are Superheroes Too

They might not wear capes, but these mammals have superpowers to spare

Zoologist Melissa Hawkins holds a squirrel with gloved hands and observes it while in the woods during daylight.

Meet the Scientist Extracting Ancient DNA From Squirrels and Lemurs

Zoologist Melissa Hawkins uses museum specimens and field expeditions to study rodents and primates

A ground squirrel stands on its hind legs in gravel with greenery in the background.

How Five Hibernators Chill Out During Winter

Mammals have their quirks, and that extends to how they hibernate during the cold season.

A humpback whale breaches the surface of the ocean on a sunny day as three birds fly overhead.

10 Popular Scientific Discoveries From 2021

Read about the year's most attention-grabbing findings by scientists at the National Museum of Natural History

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