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.

Natural History Museum

Museum Hours & Admission

Tues.-Sat., 9am-5pm
Sun., 12pm-4pm

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!

Summer Camps

Summer Science Camps return this June! Registration opens March 7. Dissect a squid, explore DNA, dig for fossils and more during these one-day summer camps for ages 8 to 11.

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

Coming in March: Celebrating Women in Science!

Education & Outreach

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

Researchers Plan Center to Track Mammal Pathogens in the Wild to Warn of Coming Pandemics

LAWRENCE — Researchers from the University of Kansas are helping build an international, multidisciplinary center to monitor pathogens in wild mammals and act as an early warning system for pandemic prediction and prevention.

A Fossil Fruit From California Shows Ancestors of Coffee and Potatoes Survived Cataclysm That Killed the Dinosaurs

LAWRENCE — The discovery of an 80-million-year-old fossil plant pushes back the known origins of lamiids to the Cretaceous, extending the record of nearly 40,000 species of flowering plants including modern-day staple crops like coffee, tomatoes, potatoes and mint.

Researcher Helps Build Center for Avian-Influenza Pandemic Preparedness with NSF Award

LAWRENCE — As humanity tries to find its footing after the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of Kansas is taking steps to help ready the United States and the rest of the world for future global health crises.

52-Million-Year-Old Fossils From High Arctic Show Near Primates Were Cool with Colder Climate

LAWRENCE — Two sister species of near-primate, called “primatomorphans,” dating back about 52 million years have been identified by researchers at the University of Kansas as the oldest to have dwelled north of the Arctic Circle.