The Florida Archaeological Collections at the Florida Museum of Natural History span more than 100 years of investigations in Florida. While the Anthropology Department within the museum wasn’t founded until 1952, the collections and records include materials from earlier expeditions and programs wi
efforts located the mission complex at Fig Springs (San MartÃn de Ayacuto) which led
The site of En Bas Saline was first located and tested in 1977 by medical missionary and avocational archaeologist William Hodges of the Hopital le Bon Samaritain in Limbé, Haiti, as part of his lifelong search for Columbus’s lost fort of La Navidad. Dr. Hodges was shown elaborate Taíno pottery by
He mapped and carried out test excavations at the site, and the results led him to
Remember this? Walk down memory lane with us to look at past special exhibits we’ve enjoyed here at the Florida Museum! While this exhibit has moved on to other places, we treasured the opportunity to learn and explore. Find out what exhibits are currently here at the Museum: Science Up
until about 3.5 million years ago, when the formation of the Panama land bridge led
This past spring, the Florida Museum Randell Research Center (RRC) hosted a two-part lecture series, paired with volunteer enrichment and training workshops. This year, the series were designed to present regionally relevant scientific topics — including coastal archaeology, history, and community r
The accompanying workshop, co-led by me and RRC Director Michelle LeFebvre, gave
Researchers at the Florida Museum of Natural History and collaborating institutions have been collectively awarded $2,837,441 in funding from the National Science Foundation this month. Awards were distributed to faculty members in archaeology, vertebrate paleontology, Lepidoptera, biodiversity info
molecular cause of arrested development in females and which changes in DNA structure led
An analysis of more than 70,000 fossils indicates that mollusk communities were incredibly resilient to major climatic shifts during the last ice age. Scientists from the Florida Museum of Natural History and several European research institutions tracked the history of Adriatic ecosystems throug
€œThis has occurred as far back as the Roman Empire, when increased agriculture led
Did you know that people lived and fished on Florida’s Gulf Coast long before the first pyramids in Egypt were built?  Before Florida became a tourist destination, it was home to many Indigenous peoples, including the Calusa of southwest Florida. The name Calusa is believed to mean “fierce peopl
Explore the Calusa Legacy Today The Florida Museum of Natural History has led
To be fair, the newly described Waray dwarf burrowing snake is pretty great at hiding. In its native habitat on the islands of Samar and Leyte in the Philippines, the snake usually surfaces only after heavy rains, similar to earthworms washing up on suburban sidewalks after a downpour. So, it
DNA and physical features, including its scales, which can differentiate species, led
Shark attacks decreased for the third consecutive year, falling to 57 unprovoked bites worldwide in 2020, compared with 64 bites in 2019 and 66 in 2018, according to the annual summary issued by the University of Florida’s International Shark Attack File. The most recent five-year global average san
Consistent with long-term trends, the U.S. led the world in number of bites, with
Christopher Columbus’ accounts of the Caribbean include harrowing descriptions of fierce raiders who abducted women and cannibalized men – stories long dismissed as myths. But a new study suggests Columbus may have been telling the truth. Using the equivalent of facial recognition technology,
corrected the name to “Caribe” a few decades later, but the similar-sounding names led
