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National Museum of Natural History

A brown and white quail stands in a grassy field in front of taller grasses behind it.

Across the Smithsonian, Researchers are Working Together to Save Virginia’s Birds

This National Virginia Day, learn how Smithsonian scientists are using historic collections and current conservation practices to bring back declining populations of grassland birds

Yellow and white lichens are pictured against a back background on a tree branch.

Meet the Smithsonian Fellow Alumni Helping to Save the Planet

This Earth Day, learn about early-career researchers who are tackling issues from green technology to lichen biodiversity and coral rehabilitation

Under the waves swirls a bed of sea grass. Above the water is a coastal home attached to a dock.

New Study Puts Smithsonian Conservation Efforts to the Test

The findings illustrate how people-focused initiatives benefit both society and nature

A flower with bright pink petals and a yellow interior blooms on the surface of a water near several green and brown lily pads.

New Smithsonian Exhibition Explores the Intersection of People and Nature

See the historic giant hornet ‘nest zero’ and explore how communities near and far interact with nature in ‘Our Places’

Mosquitoes are more than blood-sucking menaces. They also pollinate flowers, have intricate sex lives and eat other disease-carrying mosquitoes. (Lawrence Reeves)

The Secret Lives of Mosquitoes, the World’s Most Hated Insects

While some are a nuisance, others working as nighttime pollinators may be critically important to a functioning ecosystem

From leaf-engineering to complex social circles, there’s more to bats than flying and echolocation. (Charles J Sharp)

Five Reasons to Love Bats

For Bat Week this year, we rounded up five reasons to love and conserve these misunderstood mammals.

The National Museum of Natural History’s new Chief Scientist, Dr. Rebecca Johnson (James D. Tiller, Smithsonian Institution)

Meet the Smithsonian’s Newest Chief Scientist

Get to know the woman leading science at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.

The spectacled flowerpecker has been spotted eating mistletoe, a parasitic plant that grows high in Borneo’s forest canopy. The distinctive white markings around the eyes earned these birds their common name. (John Anderton)

Scientists Describe New Bird Species 10 Years After First Reported Sighting

In an article published today in the journal <i>Zootaxa</i>, Smithsonian researchers described the spectacled flowerpecker after a decade of only scattered sightings and photographs of the small gray birds.

Sgaawaay K’uuna is one of more than 20 films celebrating language diversity that will be screened at the Smithsonian's Mother Tongue Film Festival. (Still from Sgaawaay K’uuna (Edge of the Knife))

Don’t Miss These Award-Winning Films at the Mother Tongue Film Festival

Celebrate language diversity at the Smithsonian's Mother Tongue Film Festival.

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