Last updated: 7/25/2023
Gainesville, Florida
Street Address
University of Florida Cultural PlazaSW 34th Street & Hull RoadGainesville, FL 32611
Mailing Address
P.O. Box 117800University of FloridaGainesville, FL 32611
phone: 352-846-2000
fax: 352-846-0253
e-mail: museuminfo@flmnh.ufl.edu
web: www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/

Hours

Monday - Saturday
10 AM - 5 PM
Sunday
12 PM - 5 PM
Closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas

Admissions

Free General Admission; Fee for Butterfly Rainforest and some Temporary Exhibits

Staff

Catherine Carey
phone:
Douglas S. Jones
phone: 352-273-1902
Darcie MacMahon
phone: 352-273-2053
Ian Breheny
phone: 352-273-2078
Amy Hester
phone:
Elise LeCompte
phone:
Griffin Sheehy
phone:
Marie Emmerson
phone:
Beverly Sensbach
phone:
Dale Johnson
phone:
Kara Schwartz
phone:
Julie Waters
phone:
Tina Choe
phone:
Jonnie Dietz
phone:
Steve Drury
phone:
Kaitlin Gardiner
phone: 352-273-2028
Description

Visitors to the Florida Museum, on the University of Florida campus in Gainesville, can enjoy hundreds of exotic butterflies in a rainforest setting, witness a South Florida Calusa Indian welcoming ceremony, experience a life-size limestone cave, and see a mammoth and mastodon from the last Ice Age. Permanent exhibits include Northwest Florida: Waterways and Wildlife, South Florida People and Environments, Hall of Florida Fossils: Evolution of Life and Land, and the McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, which features the screened, outdoor Butterfly Rainforest exhibit with hundreds of live butterflies.

Dickinson Hall houses the museum's other research activities and vast collections containing more than 40 million natural history specimens and artifacts.

Mission

The state's official natural history museum, dedicated to understanding, preserving and interpreting biological diversity and cultural heritage.

History

Formerly named the Florida State Museum, established by the legislature in 1917 as the official state museum of natural history.

Artifact Collections

The Florida Museum's Ethnographic and Archaeological collections contain more than 20 million artifacts.

Research Collections

Anthropology: 8.8 million. It is the world's largest collection of Spanish Colonial artifacts and prehistoric Florida artifacts. Plants: 470,000. This collection leads the state in plant identification. Mollusks: 3 million. This is the eigth-largest U.S. collection. Butterflies and Moths: 1 million. This is the world's third-largest collection. Fish: 2.3 million. This is the fourth-largest U.S. collection. Reptiles and Amphibians: 190,000. This is the eigth-largest U.S. collection. Birds: 73,000. This is the world's third-largest sound recording collection and the fifth-largest skeleton collection. Mammals: 34,000. This is the world's second-largest marine mammal collection. Plant Fossils: 250,000. This collection leads the international research of flowering plant origins. Invertebrate Fossils: 3.75 million. This is the world's largest Florida collection and the fifth-largest North American Cenozoic collection. Vertebrate Fossils: 700,000. This is the fifth-largest U.S. collection. Total specimens and artifacts combined: 40+ million.

Educational Programs

Marvelous Explorations through Science and Stories, operated out of the museum, educates more than 850 children through science and literature-based activities in Head Start classrooms. About 4,500 students participated in docent-led tours during 2002-2003.Science and Engineering Experiences for Knowledge educated 60 students through an after-school program, and received a three-year grant from the National Science Foundation. Other educational activities include an Animal Fair, Sensational Science, Buchholtz BioTrek afternoons and Science Sunday lectures.

Governance

University

Publications

Annual Reports, published annually. Natural History Magazine inserts, published monthly for members only. Contact the museum front desk to receive a copy.

Services
Gift Shop
Exhibitions
Museum Events
DISCLAIMER
This information, including business hours, addresses and contact information is provided for general reference purposes only. No representation is made or warranty is given as to its content or the reliability thereof. User assumes all risk of use. Stories USA, Inc. and its content suppliers assume no responsibility for any loss or delay resulting from such use. Please call ahead to verify the dates, the location and directions.

MUSEUM CONFERENCES

Museum Trustee Association Spring Forum 2024

April 10 - 14, 2024

Atlanta, Georgia

Texas Association of Museums 2024 Lubock Annual Conference

April 14 - 17, 2024

Lubbock, Texas

2024 Colorado-Wyoming ANNUAL MEETING

May 1 - 4, 2024

Worland, Wyoming

West Virginia Association of Museums 2024 Conference

June 6 - 8, 2024

Shepherdstown, West Virginia

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