Natural History Museum

Shooting stars have captured our imagination for centuries! For a lot of people across the world, they're a sign of good luck. But do you know what they are?

You’re looking at one of the ocean’s greatest treasures.🌿🌊 Tucked into one of the Hintze Hall alcoves is this striking display of seaweed. This arrangement is not only beautiful, it also showcases the vital role seaweed plays and why it needs to be protected. Seaweed provides shelter for many marine communities. Kelp forests can also prevent coastal erosion by absorbing some of the force of waves. Sadly, rising sea temperatures are threatening these underwater forests, causing seaweed populations to decline around the world. The species arranged in this display were collected from the coastlines of Pembrokeshire and Devon. With their beautiful colours and textures, they reveal the diversity of marine life!

Did you know that Space: Could Life Exist Beyond Earth? is the first exhibition dedicated to space and the search for life in the Museum’s 144-year history? 🚀😲 Celebrating our collections and cutting-edge science, it features exceptional technology and specimens, whilst exploring the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn and planets beyond our solar system. Space: Could Life Exist Beyond Earth? is supported by Lead Funder, @TheHuoFamilyFoundation and Lead Corporate Sponsor, Jupiter Asset Management.

In the last few weeks, some parts of the UK have been blessed by a veritable swarm of ladybirds in gardens and on beaches - they even disrupted the cricket (game)! 🦗 It’s believed that this influx of insects is due to the warm weather and abundance of aphids - which is good news for gardeners, as ladybirds act as a natural pest control! However, if there’s more ladybirds to come, make sure you’re prepared with the right terminology! Do you know the collective noun for a group of ladybirds? 🐞

Snakes: scaly, slender, and so often misunderstood. But how much do you really know about these legless reptiles? 🐍 Today is World Snake Day, so it’s a great time to find out! Snakes move in such a singular way, it’s hard to imagine that their internal structure is anything like ours. So our question for you today: do snakes have bones?

Sharks are some of the most misunderstood animals on our planet and are the subjects of many misconceptions! Can you guess which of the following facts is false?

After a long work week, we’re looking forward to a lie in this weekend! 😴 Some animals enjoy a snooze more than others! Can you guess which of the following animals sleeps the most?

Unless you’re really lucky, chances are you’ve known the sharp sting of a nettle! 🌵 In fact, the sting of a nettle is so famous that the scientific Latin name of their genus Urtica comes from the Latin word ūrere, which means ‘to burn’. But do you know why this quintessential British plant stings us so? 🤔

Do any of these plastics look familiar to you? 🔍 These were collected from the river Thames in 2019 - but many were made and disposed of between 1980-1998 - designed to be used once, then left in our waters forever. From “flushable” wet wipes to coffee cups and cotton bud sticks, the river Thames is full of plastic and microplastics being ingested by wildlife. In fact, plastic has been found in almost every crab collected by our scientists - like this Chinese mitten crab, seen here with a ball of over 100 plastic fibres that were removed from its stomach. 🦀 This is a stark reminder of the direct impact of our plastic consumption on the life around us - but also an indicator of the impact we can make by taking action, especially collective action. #PlasticFreeJuly is a global movement where millions of people challenge themselves to reduce single-use plastic waste. What steps will you take this July to reduce plastic waste? 🌍

We had a ROAR-some time at our first ever London Pride! 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ Over 40 members of staff, including a couple of our most fabulous dinosaurs, joined in the celebrations as they marched from Hyde Park Corner to Trafalgar Square. They received a warm welcome from the crowds, especially when the dinosaurs were pursued by a meteorite! ☄️ Our Pride banner and t-shirts were all united by the slogan: ‘Diversity – it’s in our nature’. LGBTQIA+ behaviours in nature have been known about for hundreds of years, from male penguin couples to sex-changing wrasses, and our staff are among those starting to undo centuries of scientific censorship. Our participation in London Pride was organised by our LGBTQIA+ Network. The team have worked hard to put on a variety of events for this year’s Pride month, and plans are already afoot for next year! 🌈