The Natural History Collection holds the most comprehensive specimen collection of birds, reptiles, fish, insects, plants, corals, worms, shells and fossils found in Bermuda. The collection aims to include a representative of every species ever found in Bermuda and grows every year as the result of ongoing research on Bermuda’s biodiversity.
Found something unusual? Report an unusual finding or observation with our online observation form.
Museum staff will use the Natural History Collection to determine if what you’ve found has been previously recorded in Bermuda or if it is new and should be added to the collection.
About The Natural History Collection
The Natural History Collection is the Government of Bermuda’s archival record of the history and current state of Bermuda’s biodiversity. This collection has become an essential tool for measuring changes in Bermuda’s natural world.
The Natural History Collection is dedicated to:
- Collecting, recording and identifying all of Bermuda’s plants and animals.
- Providing a record of all endemic and native species that occur in Bermuda, and includes organisms that have arrived accidentally, geological samples and fossils. The information is stored in the Natural History Species database.
- Providing support and collaboration with other local and international institutions as well as visiting researchers.
The collections are divided into dry and wet specimens. For example, all of Bermuda’s terrestrial plants and marine algae are pressed and dried as herbarium specimens that will last for centuries in the climate controlled collections room. Geological specimens, fossils, corals and shells are preserved in dry conditions. Many soft bodied marine animals, such as worms, anemones and fishes, are preserved in alcohol.