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

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.
A child holds his arms up imitating the Pteranodon on display.

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

Stock image of a Japanese spitting cobra

Research shows Asia — not Africa — played cradle to snake superfamily that includes cobras, mambas and many common pet species

Based on the fossil record, it’s been assumed that elapoid snakes, found worldwide, had their origins in Africa. But the new University of Kansas study appearing in Royal Society Open Science — which depends on broad genetic sampling as well as fossils — points instead to Asian origins for these snakes.
Photograph of the new Limnonectes cassiopeia species on white background

Species of giant fanged frog went unrecognized in Philippines because it was nearly identical to even larger species

Researchers from the University of Kansas have published findings in the journal Ichthyology & Herpetology describing a new species of fanged frog, named Limnonectes cassiopeia, from the Philippine island of Luzon.
Book cover of "Macroevolutionaries"

New book ‘Macroevolutionaries’ explores intersection of evolution, art and popular culture

University of Kansas paleontologist Bruce Lieberman co-wrote “Macroevolutionaries,” a collection of natural history essays, with fellow paleontologist Niles Eldredge in the tradition of their late Harvard mentor and famed science popularizer, Stephen Jay Gould.
Benecke photo, taken at Topeka, Kansas, in 1873.

Re-creations of 1870s railway photos reveal profound change to Kansas, Colorado plains

A fascinating new book chronicling transformation on the plains of Kansas and western Colorado uses repeat photography — contemporary re-creations of 1870s photos — to reveal startling changes to the landscape.