Understanding Life on Earth
The Cleveland Museum of Natural History’s Biological Sciences program is focused on the study of modern organisms in taxonomic, evolutionary, and ecological contexts. Research and collections span three areas: botany, invertebrate zoology, and vertebrate zoology. Biological collections are crucial for advancing scientific understanding in taxonomy, ecology, and evolutionary biology. They provide essential data for studying species diversity, understanding ecological interactions, and monitoring changes in biodiversity. By preserving and cataloging specimens, these collections support ongoing research, facilitate comparative studies, and contribute to conservation efforts.
Botany
The botany collection is primarily focused on plant occurrences in Ohio and northwestern Pennsylvania, but the Museum has specimens collected from almost every state, as well as Europe, South America, Asia, and Australia.
Invertebrate Zoology
Invertebrate zoology is the study of animals without backbones. At the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Invertebrate Zoology is devoted to the study and curation of its entomology collection (insects) and malacology collection (mollusks including mussels, clams, snails, limpets, and other related organisms).
Vertebrate Zoology
Vertebrate zoology is the study of animals with backbones. At the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Vertebrate Zoology focuses on four primary areas of study: ichthyology (fishes), herpetology (amphibians and reptiles), mammalogy (mammals), and ornithology (birds).
