Close up of marine reptile fossil jaw of a mosasaur on left, facing another mosasaur on right

Biodiversity Institute & Natural History Museum

We are a biodiversity research institute and a public natural history museum. We study past and present life on Earth to educate, engage and inspire.


Hours for Winter Break

The Natural History Museum will be closed Sunday, December 24 through Monday, January 1, reopening Tuesday, January 2. 


Natural History Museum

Museum Hours & Admission

Tuesday-Saturday, 9am-5pm
Sunday, 12pm-4pm
Closed on Mondays

Free admission, suggested donation of $7 for adults, $4 for children. All proceeds support the museum.

Location & Contact Information

Dyche Hall
1345 Jayhawk Blvd
Lawrence, KS 66045

Phone: 785-864-4450
Email: biodiversity@ku.edu

Membership

Support the KU Natural History Museum with a Museum Membership and enjoy benefits at the museum and at 300+ institutions around the country!

Natural History Mystery Game

Like puzzles and games? Book a time to experience the new Natural History Mystery Game at the museum for your group! The 1-hour adventure can be booked by calling Visitor Services at 785-864-4450 or emailing nhmvs@ku.edu.

Natural History Museum

The KU Natural History Museum is home to four floors of public exhibits including the historic Panorama, live snakes and insects, vertebrate and invertebrate fossils, flora and fauna of the Great Plains and much more.
Boy looking at biodiversity exhibit with various specimens including a cheetah with its mouth open

Biodiversity Institute

The KU Biodiversity Institute is an internationally recognized center for research and graduate student education in evolutionary biology, systematics and biodiversity informatics, with curated collections of over 10 million plant, animal and fossil specimens and 2 million cultural artifacts.
Four researchers gathered around herpetology collection specimens

Upcoming Events

Education & Outreach

Two students pouring liquid for an experiment

School Programs

Univ 101 Tour of Natural History Museum

Student & Faculty Programs

Scout group with museum staff and 6 youth in front of the silvisaurus dinosaur exhibit

Scout Programs

News

Rafe Brown is inaugural recipient of KUIA Advisory Board International Research Award

As a leader in equitable and collaborative international research and education, Rafe Brown, professor of ecology & evolutionary biology, is the inaugural recipient of the KU International Affairs Advisory Board International Research Award.

Interview with Herpetology Collection Manager, Ana Motta

Ana Motta, herpetology collection manager at the KU Biodiversity Institute & Natural History Museum, was recently interviewed for the KU Office of Research series, I Am Striving, focused on what inspires KU researchers, as well as the goals and impact of their work.

Museum to Host VENOMventure, a New Science-Themed Escape Room

A venomous plant is invading the University of Kansas Natural History Museum in August, and the public is invited to help discover an antivenom before it takes over the world. A biological mystery is at the heart of a new, immersive escape room game that will be at the museum Aug. 8-27.

New Push Will Digitize Records of African Plants Held in Herbaria and Museums Across the U.S.

Over the past few decades, herbaria and museums worldwide have created digital data records documenting millions of specimens in their holdings. The benefits of digitizing the contents of natural history museums and research institutions flow to the public and researchers worldwide. Now, through a…