In the Zoology Live! livestream on June 21 we explore museum collections, what they can tell us about animals of the past and how this helps us to understand animals today: The collections at the Museum are of vital importance to our understanding of biodiversity, but we would not go out and collect in the way naturalists did over 100 years ago. Making a collection … Continue reading Zoology Live! 2022 Making Collections
It is that time of year again – time for us to celebrate our Zoology Live! festival at the Museum of Zoology. We have an exciting line up of livestreams and activities, culminating in the BioBlitz at the Cambridge University Botanic Garden, where you can put what you have learnt about local wildlife to the test. Our Zoology Live! YouTube livestreams are taking place on … Continue reading Zoology Live! 2022
For International Women’s Day 2022, the Museum of Zoology hosted a special online event featuring four brilliant female scientists based in the Department of Zoology talking about their research and inspiration, all on a theme of animal evolution. Here you can find the recording of this event: This event was run on Zoom on Tuesday 8 March 2022. Here is a running order of the … Continue reading Celebrating Women in Science
For Twilight with the Museums this year, the Museum of Zoology worked with other Museums across Cambridge to develop a digital sleepover – activities that families could do together at home inspired by the Museums’ collections. As part of this, our Curator of Birds Dr Daniel Field and learning officer Dr Roz Wade ventured out early one morning in February to see which birds were … Continue reading Birdsong in Early Spring
Look out of your window and you may be looking on trees bare of leaves, and missing the comforting buzz of summer insects or dazzling colour of a butterfly wing. But not all wildlife is dormant over the winter. Although you may think it is cold in the UK, our islands provide a balmy respite for many birds that breed further north in the Arctic. … Continue reading Winter Waterbirds
Are you spooked by spiders? Far from being a fan of rats? Minded to avoid moths or backtrack at the sight of a bat? This blog post is here to set the record straight. These animals that may seem creepy or frightening showcase some amazing biology and perform important roles in the habitats where they live. Here staff, students and volunteers from the Museum of … Continue reading Creepy Creatures?
Monday 4th October 2021 is World Habitat Day. To celebrate habitats from around the world, here we look at some of the animals that live in different ecosystems from the African plains to the deep ocean floor, written by staff, students and volunteers at the Museum of Zoology. World Habitat Day was set up by the UN to reflect on urban habitats, with this year’s … Continue reading World Habitats Day 2021
It’s the summer, and so in the last of our posts celebrating National Marine Week we are having a go at our favourite beach holiday activity: rockpooling. Join Learning Officer Dr Roz Wade as she explores the animals living in the rockpools of the west coast of Scotland. Watch the feeding tentacles of sea anemones, the slow but steady movements of sea snails, darting fish, … Continue reading Pondwatch: Rockpools
To mark Endangered Species Day on Friday 21 May 2021, staff and volunteers at the Museum of Zoology have been writing about the endangered species on display in the galleries that hold stories important to them. Come and explore these amazing animals with us. Orangutan, Pongo pygmaeus Dr Ed Turner, Curator of Insects As Curator of Insects, selecting orangutans to write about might seem an … Continue reading Endangered Species Day
Join us online for this year’s Zoology Live! Festival. We were live on YouTube at 7pm every evening from Wednesday 30 June to Friday 2 July. Missed it? Fear not – you can still catch up on all the livestreams. Just scroll down and you can find them in this blog post. You can also take part in our challenges all summer. This year we … Continue reading Zoology Live! 30 June – 2 July 2021
May 10-16 2021 is Mental Health Awareness Week. Spending time in nature has been shown to have huge benefits for our mental health, reducing stress and anxiety as well as improving physical wellbeing. While being out in the wilds of the countryside, up high on a mountain or down by the sea provide us with wonderful experiences of the natural world, don’t despair if you … Continue reading Solace In Nature
Sunday 2 May 2021 is International Dawn Chorus Day. To celebrate, we went out early one morning in late April to Coldham’s Common in Cambridge with ornithologist Dr Rob Pople to record the birds singing as the sun was rising. Here you can watch highlights of our dawn chorus walk, and listen to the main species singing with tips on how to recognise them. Why … Continue reading Dawn Chorus Day 2021
If you’ve visited the Museum of Zoology, you will have been greeted by the largest specimen in our collection, the magnificent skeleton of a Fin Whale. In this Nature Classroom we will be going on a journey into the oceans to explore the amazing world of whales, and see what their skeletons can tell us about the way they live and have evolved. These activities … Continue reading Whales!
Winter is a tough time of year, with its short days, long nights, and often overcast skies. But there is still wildlife to be enjoyed, and spending time in nature has been shown to improve wellbeing. With these posts, the team at the Museum of Zoology are sharing how they like to spend five minutes in nature and get reacquainted with the wildlife on their … Continue reading Five Minutes in Nature: Starlings
Throughout this week we have been sharing some amazing winter wildlife with you, and today we have joined this all up as our 12 Days of Critters. Why not download the song sheet and sing along with your new festive favourite: Find out about the 12 critters, and scroll down to learn how to make your own origami starling murmuration to decorate your home. Winter … Continue reading 12 Days of Winter Wildlife: 12 Days of Critters
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