MUSEUM OF ZOOLOGY

The Museum of Zoology displays thousands of specimens spanning the entire animal kingdom, from elephants, giant ground sloths and giraffes, to birds, reptiles, insects and molluscs. Our collections are amongst the best in the world. As well as being open for the public to enjoy, they are used for academic study by researchers and students worldwide.

The Museum holds many wonderful treasures, such as specimens discovered by the great naturalists, including Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace.

The collection contains approximately two million items and thousands of these are on display. Changing displays and temporary exhibitions highlight unusual and significant items from the Museum’s stores, such as the skeleton of the extinct Dodo. A vibrant public engagement programme brings the collections, history and research of the Museum and Department of Zoology to audiences of all ages both onsite and online.

Collection highlights include:

• Cambridge’s largest resident – the 21m fin whale

• The giant ground sloth

• One of the most complete Dodo skeletons in the UK

• A beetle collection made by Charles Darwin when he was a student at Cambridge

The Museum is part of the Department of Zoology and plays a vital role in many aspects of the Department’s working life. Its specimens are regularly used in undergraduate teaching, with many final year students undertaking assessed projects in the Museum with the curators as their supervisors. Similarly, postgraduate students embark on PhD programmes based within the Museum.

The Museum’s curators, past and present, have produced ground-breaking research that has fed directly into teaching as well as collaborating with other research groups in the Department.

From moths to monkeys, mammoths to manatees, you can discover stories of extinction, survival, evolution and exploration.