National Museum of Natural History

Trees line a winding river, and the blue sky is reflected in the water

Building a Library of Life: How Smithsonian Collections Are Revolutionizing Ocean eDNA Research

Unlocking natural history collections is key to monitoring and protecting Earth’s environments using eDNA

A multitude of sea lions sit very close together on a crowded beach.

Reading Between the Bones: New Research Reveals an Unexpected Growth Spurt in California Sea Lions

As climate change alters ocean ecosystems, scientists look to marine mammal ecology and morphology to predict how recovering species will fare in an uncertain future

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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

Elephant-like mammoth and mastodons trudge across a pond while a group of giant camels stop for a drink. In the background are snow-capped mountains. Crouching in the grassy foreground are a pair of sabertooth cats.

What the Demise of Mammoths Can Teach Us About Future Extinctions

Smithsonian scientist's research illustrates how North American ecosystems are still reeling from the megafaunal extinction that closed the ice ages

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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

6) Eroding Late Holocene Native American oyster midden at low tide in Fishing Bay, Maryland.JPG

When Was the World Our Oyster? We Asked the Anthropologist Investigating Sustainable Oyster Practices Through History

Smithsonian anthropologist Torben Rick studies how different communities sustained oyster populations for centuries, and how that changed in the wake of colonization

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

Jun Wen sits at a wooden table in front of a bookshelf examining a herbarium booklet of pressed plant specimens.

Meet the Scientist Who Maps the World’s Past and Present Plants

Plant biologist Jun Wen investigates the sprawling diversity of plant life on Earth and the lessons it offers in conservation

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’

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

Head scientist at the Smithsonian Marine Station, Valerie Paul, collects blue-green algae samples to study the chemicals they emit. Those chemicals can endanger coral reefs, but also have biomedical potential. (Raphael Ritson-Williams)

Meet the Marine Scientist Studying How Algae Communicates

Valerie Paul's work adds to scientists’ knowledge about the ways marine biochemicals can potentially help restore coral reefs and create new biomedicine.

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