Ghosts Behind Glass
How museums display extinct species—and what these exhibits say about us. While it’s no longer possible to encounter a dodo in the wild, we can still come face-to-face with them in museums. The rema...
Are you in UK and want to hear about my book Ghosts Behind Glass? 3 public talks in Feb:
Cambridge Museum of Zoology, 11 Feb www.museum.zoo.cam.ac.uk/events/talk-...
M Shed Bristol, 12 Feb www.bristolmuseums.org.uk/whats-on/m-s...
Oxford NatHist Museum, 13 Feb www.oumnh.ox.ac.uk/event/dead-a...
12.01.2026 10:44
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Dark green background with white text overlaid reading "call for papers", surrounded by various natural history illustrations of animals wearing party hats.
🚨We have a SUPER exciting announcement!🚨
Our next Summer Meeting will be at @zslofficial.bsky.social on the theme of The Zoological Society of London at 200: Science, Society, and the Natural World 🥳
📅1-3 July 2026
🗺️Zoological Society of London
Find out how to submit 👇🏻
shnh.org.uk/all-events/c...
05.12.2025 20:44
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Moss packets attached to a page of the moss herbarium of William Henry Fox Talbot
One of the packets in the herbarium opened to reveal a specimen of Andraea rupestris collected by Lewis Weston Dillwyn on Ben Nevis
Specimens of Bartramia ithyphylla from Uscoed Fendry collected by Jane Talbot
Specimens of ‘Bryum compactum’ from Crymlyn Bog, Glamorganshire, supplied by Jane Talbot to her cousin
Moss specimens from the 1810s in the herbarium of William Henry Fox Talbot, the photography pioneer, at the British Library, including some supplied by his cousin Jane Talbot (1796–1874)
You can read about the family and their moss interests in BJHS: dx.doi.org/10.1017/S000... #bryology #bryophytes
05.12.2025 16:42
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Dark green background with white text that reads: "The zoo as a site of science and experimentation, education, spectacle and entertainment
ZSL’s role in collecting, classifying, and displaying animals from across the world
‘Star’ animals and their legacy
ZSL and its role in institutional and global networks
Zoo design and the aesthetics of zoological display, including botanical planting
The role of ZSL in conservation science and breeding programmes
Animal care and control including veterinary science and feeding regimes
The work of artists inspired by ZSL’s collections"
For the historic 200th anniversary of the Zoological Society of London, we want to explore the global impact it has had on natural history.
We're looking for researchers to submit papers that delve into the history of the ZSL, its members & animals 🐊🦛
🤔Topics could include (but not limited to!):
05.12.2025 20:44
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Dark green background with white text overlaid reading "call for papers", surrounded by various natural history illustrations of animals wearing party hats.
🚨We have a SUPER exciting announcement!🚨
Our next Summer Meeting will be at @zslofficial.bsky.social on the theme of The Zoological Society of London at 200: Science, Society, and the Natural World 🥳
📅1-3 July 2026
🗺️Zoological Society of London
Find out how to submit 👇🏻
shnh.org.uk/all-events/c...
05.12.2025 20:44
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There are still a few weeks left to submit your proposals for our ECR Symposium next year!
We'd love papers from across the field which speak to all aspects of the history of natural history by early career researchers!
Find out how to submit 👇🏻
23.11.2025 19:30
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Illustration of a marble eel (Synbranchus marmoratus) from an 18th-century German natural history book. The eel’s elongated, serpentine body is coiled twice and features a mottled brown and tan pattern resembling marble. Its head is detailed with a slightly open mouth showing sharp teeth, and a prominent blue eye. A small circular diagram is included near the tail, possibly showing an anatomical detail. The image has a plain beige background framed by a black line, with a title and scientific name in the top right corner. The style is precise and naturalistic, typical of historical zoological illustrations.
🌊 D. Marcus Elieser Bloch's, ausübenden Arztes zu Berlin ... Oeconomische Naturgeschichte der Fische Deutschlands ....
Berlin: Auf Kosten des Verfassers und in Commission bei dem Buchhändler Hr. Hesse, 1782-1795..
[Source]
23.11.2025 17:23
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23.11.2025 19:20
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Discovering the Okapi
YouTube video by Society for the History of Natural History
Well my Discovering the #Okapi talk is already available - my thanks to @animalhistories.bsky.social and @sochistnathist.bsky.social - you can watch my talk here: youtu.be/Hx1Z2XiETA4?...
18.11.2025 09:50
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This is a truly wonderful book! I was fortunate to write a review for Archives of Natural History here: www.euppublishing.com/doi/10.3366/...
18.11.2025 15:14
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Hey you. Wanna apply for a fellowship on collections? the AHRC Early career fellowships in cultural & heritage institutions are open!
The Natural History Museum priorities are below.
If you wanna talk birds, hit me up. Collectors, colonialism, Canada, Australia & more
www.ukri.org/opportunity/...
12.09.2025 19:01
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An old time-y illustration of a Bitter orange.
Today is Sextidi the 26th of Fructidor in the year 233.
Fructidor is the month of fruitfulness.
Today we celebrate bitter orange. #JacobinDay
More information on bitter orange
11.09.2025 22:00
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🌿 Freshly released! "A Year with Gilbert White" by Jenny Uglow brings to life the observer of nature whose "Natural History of Selborne" has enchanted readers for centuries.
tinyurl.com/5n7axwdy
#NewBook #GilbertWhite @faberbooks.bsky.social @sochistnathist.bsky.social @gilbertwhites.bsky.social
10.09.2025 14:06
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A deep green background with white lettering that reads "The society for the History of Natural History Call for Papers" surrounded by historic illustrations of different types od seaweed.
📢 Call for Papers! 📢
We're excited to announce that in 2026 we will again be hosting an Early Career Researcher Symposium, and that this time it will be a partnership with @linneansociety.bsky.social!🙌🏻
We'd love to hear from all ECRs, so find how to submit a proposal 👇🏻
shnh.org.uk/news/cfp-ear...
12.09.2025 12:52
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On Sept 1, Australia celebrates the 1st day of spring with #NationalWattleDay! This beautiful wattle, Acacia prominens (Golden Rain Wattle), is from Curtis's Botanical Magazine (1836) contributed to #BHLib by @mobotgarden.bsky.social biodiversitylibrary.org/page/466265 #FlowersInTheLibrary #ILoveBHL
01.09.2025 05:21
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Illustrations of a white mushroom
Agaricus arvensis by Hans Walty - Swiss National Library, GS-WALTY-A-1-82 #FungiFriends #MushroomMonday commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CH...
01.09.2025 07:39
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A deep green background with the logo of the Archives of Natural History.
Finally! Another fantastic edition of Archives of Natural History went out.
It records two previously unpublished Darwin manuscripts, details the journey of the giant panda ‘Grandma’ to Britain in 1938, and the life of Jane Dye 📜🐼🦆
Find the full journal here 👇🏻
www.euppublishing.com/toc/anh/52/1
25.08.2025 19:34
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A deep green background with white writing reading "WT Stearn Essay Prize" and a drawing of a lemur and a yellow bird.
A picture of Theo looking directly at the camera.
We're delighted to say that the winner of the William T. Stearn Student Essay Prize was Theo Detweilier.
Awarded for his very well-researched essay which offers a valuable re-evaluation of the work of Henry Baker Tristram and his interpretation of mammals in the Holy Land.
25.08.2025 19:34
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A photograph of Malini Roy, Cam Sharp Jones and Cheryl Tipp each holind a copy of Animals: Art, Science and Sound.
The front cover of Animals: Art, Science and Sound.
Our Book Prize went to three people this year! 🎉
It was awarded to Malini Roy, Cam Sharp Jones and Cheryl Tipp for Animals: Art, Science and Sound.
The book brings together artworks, printed works and wildlife sounds showcasing the greatest and strangest representations of animals on record.
25.08.2025 19:34
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A deep green background with white words reading "Founders' Medal" and a picture of the medal flanked by two peaches.
The SHNH Founders’ Medal this year went to David J. Mabberley!
To botanists, David hardly needs an introduction. He has produced over three hundred and fifty publications, ranging from plant ecology and systematics to the history of science and botanical illustration.
25.08.2025 19:34
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A deep green background with white text reading "President's Award" and a picture of the award surrounded by orange flowers.
A picture of Caroline Cornish smiling broadly and looking just to the left of the viewer.
We awarded the SHNH President’s Award to the ever-fantastic Caroline Cornish!
Caroline has broken new ground in revealing Kew’s colonial history, highlighting under-represented voices in Kew’s archives and collections, and increasing access and diversity in researchers using Kew’s resources.
25.08.2025 19:34
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Botanical art by Pierre-Joseph Redouté for 'Choix des plus belles fleurs prises dans différentes familles du règne végétal et de quelques branches des plus beaux fruits.' Published in Paris from 1827-1832.
Library of Congress Rare Book and Special Collections.
#rarebook #sciart #naturalhistory
24.08.2025 17:08
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Historical illustration depicting two detailed views of a turtle, identified as "Die gemeine Dosen-Schildkröte" (Terrapin species Pyxidens clausa). The top image shows a side profile of the turtle walking on land, highlighting its patterned shell, short legs with claws, and an elongated neck with a small head resembling a bird's beak. The bottom image presents a top-down view of the shell, emphasizing the intricate, dark symmetrical markings and texture on the carapace. The illustration is rendered in muted brown and beige tones, typical of 19th-century scientific plates, with fine shading to suggest texture and depth.
🐸 Bilder-Atlas zur wissenschaftlich-populären Naturgeschichte der Amphibien in ihren sämmtlichen Hauptformen
Wien: Kaiserl. Koenigl. Hof- und Staatsdr., 1864
[Source]
24.08.2025 18:23
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A majestically colourful cockerel. From a picture book ABC for children, printed in the Swiss city of Bern in 1860. @theulspeccoll.bsky.social Ud.9.460.
18.08.2025 11:57
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