Preserving unique natural areas for science, education, and enjoyment
Connecting People with Nature
The Cleveland Museum of Natural History’s Natural Areas Program works to help people better understand and connect with nature. Museum staff lead hikes on natural areas year-round, giving the public opportunities to visit our unique preserves. Sign up for an upcoming field trip.
Natural Areas Program
The Museum preserves natural areas for science, education, and enjoyment. We locate and acquire natural areas, and we care for existing properties with an active stewardship program. The Museum believes strongly that it must conduct the ongoing stewardship necessary to preserve these sites and support their current and potential conservation value.
Over the years, the Natural Areas Program has gradually built a collection of nature preserves that represents the broad spectrum of habitats and species found within the geographic area of northern Ohio. Our natural areas are, in essence, a “living museum,” intended to preserve the rich biodiversity of the Cleveland region for future generations to study and appreciate. No other natural history museum in the world has as large and varied a living collection.
The Natural Areas Program was established in 1956 when the Museum acquired Fern Lake Bog. In the decades since, many other sites have been preserved, with more than 12,500 acres currently under protection. Each of our preserves harbors one or more distinct biotic communities, including hardwood forest, fossil dune ridge, marsh, swamp, and glacial wetland, among many others. These natural areas serve multiple purposes. They are an outstanding resource for studying and educating others about biological diversity. They are model scientific field laboratories in which researchers can conduct long-term studies at sites relatively free from human interference. And they are spectacular locations to take the public on field trips.
Three of the Museum's natural areas are open to the public: Mentor Marsh, Scheele Preserve on Kelleys Island, and North Kingsville Sand Barrens. Others may be visited with Museum naturalists on field trips, or by special arrangement. To learn more about accessing our natural areas, visit our land access page.
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