The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University: A Journey Through Time and Nature

Founded in 1812, The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University stands as the oldest natural history museum in the Americas, with dual roles as both a museum and a research and educational institution. For over two centuries, the Academy has remained committed to its mission: to encourage and cultivate the sciences, exploring the remarkable diversity of our natural world and sharing these discoveries with the public. In 2011, an affiliation between the Academy and Drexel University was formed, drawing on the strengths of both institutions.

A Storied History

The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia dates back to 1812 and was founded by some of the top names in American science at the time, including Thomas Say, Charles Pickering, and William Bartram. Later members included the likes of James Leidy, John James Audubon, and Charles Darwin. The increasing sophistication of the earth and life sciences, combined with a growing awareness of the variety of life and landscape in the American wilderness that has not been discovered, led a small group of naturalists to establish the Academy of Natural Sciences in the winter of 1812. The academy was meant to foster a gathering of fellow naturalists, and nurture the growth and credibility of American science. They frequently looked to their European counterparts for inspiration and expertise and longed to be regarded as equals. On 25 April 1817 they were incorporated into the society under the title of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia by the legislature of Pennsylvania.

Exhibits and Collections: A World of Discovery

Reviews of The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University all mention its incredible collections and exhibits that highlight the museum's engagement in biodiversity and commitment to learning about the natural world. With tons of museum exhibits, collections, and other Drexel University treasures to explore, it's easy to get lost in the magic and wonder of the natural world.

Dinosaur Hall: A Prehistoric Adventure

One of the most exciting exhibits for kids and adults alike is the museum's collection of dinosaur skeletons on display in Dinosaur Hall. As you enter the museum, one of the first things you'll see is a 42-foot-tall T. rex looming over you. A fully constructed Tyrannosaurus rex - one of the largest meat-eating dinosaurs to ever roam the earth - greets visitors in Dinosaur Hall. The exhibit showcases more than 30 dinosaur and Mesozoic reptile species, including casts of Hadrosaurus foulkii fossils discovered in New Jersey in 1856. In 1868, before most of the world had heard of dinosaurs, the Academy became the first place to display a fully mounted dinosaur, the plant-eater Hadrosaurus foulkii from New Jersey. Visitors lined up to see it, and the museum, not used to large crowds, started to charge admission in an attempt to reduce the number of people coming through its doors. Known as Philadelphia’s dinosaur museum, the Academy has a rich collection of dinosaur fossils that tell the story of life on Earth when the largest land animals roamed the planet.

Dioramas: A Glimpse into Diverse Habitats

Another of the top draws at the museum is the collection of lifelike dioramas that depict scenes of animals and wildlife from across the globe. And 37 dioramas created between the 1930s and 1950s showcase large game animals - including gorillas, mountain sheep, lions, bison and more - mounted in 3D-painted dioramas that replicate their natural habitats. The gorilla diorama gives visitors a glimpse of the wilds of Africa, while the panda and tiger dioramas spotlight Asia. See three continents of wildlife in their natural habitats at Philly's natural history museum. The dioramas illustrate the enormous variety of habitats and the wealth of wildlife the land supports. As human populations grow and develop the land, the fate of native plants and animals is often ignored. As a result, many of the species in the exhibits can only be seen in zoos and museums today.

Outside In: A Hands-On Nature Experience

From Wednesday to Sunday, museum guests can check out one unique exhibit called Outside In. Families can meet the museum's animal ambassadors here and learn about them and their habitats. The museum's Outside-In exhibit allows children to meet and touch live animals. In the Outside-In hands-on nature center, children can touch or observe live animals, crawl through a tree trunk and examine fossils under a microscope. Designed for children ages 3-8 and their parents, Outside In is a welcoming hands-on discovery center where inquisitive youngsters can investigate a forest, visit the seashore, see and touch live animals, and more.

Live Animal Center: Ambassadors of Nature

The Live Animal Center is an integral part of The Academy of Natural Sciences, as it allows staff members to study and learn about and from these species up close. The Academy cares for about 100 live animals that cannot be released to the wild for one reason or another. Some are rehabilitated wildlife and others are unwanted pets in need of long-term care. The Academy provides them with top-notch veterinary care and enrichment. In return, the animals enrich our visitors' experiences. The Academy’s live animals are an integral part of its educational programming both in the museum and at regional schools. They serve as nature’s ambassadors to the public.

Reptiles: Face-to-Face Encounters

If one thing is certain, museum guests will have plenty of opportunities to see a lot of reptiles. In Dinosaur Hall, you'll come face-to-face with the mighty dinosaurs, the fiercest reptiles ever to walk the Earth. As you make your way to the Live Animal Center, you'll encounter animals like turtles, snakes, and tortoises.

Butterflies!: A Tropical Garden

In the Butterflies! exhibit, a lush tropical garden filled with plants and a multitude of live butterflies and moths offers a unique experience. This Atlas Moth is the largest moth in the world with a wingspan the size of a dinner plate. Butterflies, like this blue morpho, sometimes land on unsuspecting visitors. They are quite harmless. The coloration of this butterfly looks completely different when its wings are open from when they are closed.

The Academy's Collections: A Treasure Trove of Knowledge

The Academy of Natural Sciences holds an internationally important natural history collection. Currently, there are over 18 million biological specimens, and hundreds of thousands of volumes, journals, illustrations, photographs, and archival items in its library. These collections were obtained through multiple means, including the donation or purchase of existing collections or individual items, the collection activities of Academy-sponsored expeditions, or those of individual scientists, whether or not they work at the Academy. Some collections were originally gathered by other institutions.

Read also: Explore Haas Hall Academy

Botany

Botany is the study of plants, including nonvascular bryophytes (mosses, liverworts, and hornworts) and vascular plants, including ferns, conifers and flowering plants. The field of botany has also traditionally included the study of algae, lichens, and fungi which are now classified in different biological kingdoms. The Academy's Diatom Herbarium, the largest in the Americas and the second largest in the world, contains approximately 220,000 slides of these microscopic algae. The herbarium contains many specimens contributed by notable collectors, a diversity of fossil diatoms, and diatoms collected as part of numerous freshwater environmental surveys in the United States. The Diatom Herbarium also provides collections and taxonomic services for the Phycology Section of the Patrick Center for Environmental Research.

Entomology

Entomology has been important to the Academy since its founding. Two of its earliest members include Thomas Say, regarded as the father of American entomology, and Titian Peale, a leading natural history illustrator and the chief naturalist on the United States Exploring Expedition (1834-1842). The entomology collection currently contains more than 3.5 million specimens and includes the Titian Peale Moth and Butterfly Collection, the oldest entomology collection in the United States.

Ichthyology

Ichthyology has also been a part of Academy collections and research since its beginnings, but the size of the collection was relatively modest until acquisition of Edward Drinker Cope's personal collections in 1898. A few years later, Henry Weed Fowler began his tenure at the Academy, during which he systematized the collections and described 1,408 species. The Ichthyology collection, which currently houses nearly 1.2 million specimens and nearly 3,000 types, is one of the most important such collections in the United States.

Malacology

Two of the early members of the Academy, Thomas Say and Isaac Lea, were malacologists (see also conchologists). The Academy's malacology collection is the oldest such collection in the United States and is the 3rd largest in the world. It currently contains over 10 million specimens, including types erected by more than 400 authors.

Ornithology

The majority of ornithologists active in the United States during the first half of the 19th century, including Charles Lucien Bonaparte, George Ord, Titian Ramsay Peale, John James Audubon, John Cassin, Thomas Nuttall, and John Kirk Townsend, were active members of the Academy. With nearly 200,000 specimens representing over 9,000 species, the Ornithology collection is one of the largest and most taxonomically complete bird collections in the world.

Vertebrate Paleontology

Vertebrate paleontology in the United States originated in Philadelphia through the efforts of naturalists and scientists associated with the American Philosophical Society (APS) during the first decade of the 19th century and at The Academy of Natural Sciences thereafter. By the end of the 19th century, the holdings from the APS, including the Thomas Jefferson Fossil Collection, had been transferred to the Academy for safekeeping. Currently, the collection contains more than 22,000 specimens, including many types.

Other Collections

The Academy houses several collections of smaller size yet historical and scientific importance. The general invertebrate collection contains about 22,600 specimens, while the invertebrate paleontology collection contains about 105,000 lots. Both contain numerous type specimens. The Frank J. Myers Rotifer Collection is the most comprehensive collection of rotifers on microslides. The herpetology collection contains about 40,000 specimens, including more than 500 type specimens. The mammalogy collection contains about 36,000 specimens and 180 holotypes.

Research and Environmental Science

Founded in 1812, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University is a leading natural history museum dedicated to advancing research, education and public engagement in biodiversity and environmental science. Traditionally, researchers at natural science (or natural history) institutions such as the Academy engaged in biological taxonomy, the science of discovering, describing, naming, and classifying species. In recent decades, research has shifted in emphasis to the science of systematics, the study of the evolutionary relationships among these species.

Patrick Center for Environmental Research

Formerly the Limnology Department, the Patrick Center for Environmental Research focuses on applied ecology. Its 1948 biological survey of the Conestoga River Basin in Pennsylvania, a milestone in environmental research, led to similar surveys and studies throughout much of the United States. As of 2013, much of the research at the Patrick Center is conducted with regulatory agencies and other governmental bodies, in fields such as diatom autecology, environmental chemistry and toxicology, habitat restoration, long-term environmental trends, species conservation, and watershed management.

The Biogeochemistry Section of the Patrick Center is concerned with the influence of aquatic organisms on the sources, fate and transport of chemicals in aquatic systems. The Ecological Modeling Section employs sophisticated and rigorous mathematical modelling techniques to address a variety of questions in basic and applied research. The Fisheries Section of the Patrick Center conducts research into the ecology, conservation, and management of lotic and estuarine fishes. Benthic macroinvertebrates (primarily aquatic insects, crustaceans, and mollusks) are useful for biological monitoring programs. Because of their great diversity and specific ecological requirements, algae, particularly diatoms, make excellent indicators of water quality. The Phycology Section of the Patrick Center provides algal analyses for governmental and other agencies interested in both assessing water quality and long-term environmental trends.

Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Ecology (LMSE)

For most of its history, biological taxonomy and systematics were conducted using comparative morphology. In recent decades, however, advances in molecular biology and computational technologies have opened new possibilities for studying the diversity and history of life through the use of cladistics and computational phylogenetics. In 2004, the Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Ecology (LMSE) was formed as a shared, multi-user facility to improve access to and provide training for the use of molecular data in systematic and ecological research.

Mongolia Project

The Academy's work in Mongolia started with the realization of the unique research opportunities available at Lake Hovsgol (Hovsgol Nuur). Recent work at Hovsgol is focusing on the consequences of and sustainable responses to climate change. The Mongolian Aquatic Insect Survey is a multi-year biodiversity survey, environmental monitoring and capacity building project managed by Jon Gelhaus of the Academy's Entomology Department. The survey has yielded numerous new species and hundreds of geographic records for known aquatic insects, provided an extensive dataset for ongoing environmental monitoring, and has helped develop research and technical infrastructures in Mongolia.

Center for Environmental Policy

The Center for Environmental Policy informs and engages various constituents, promotes solutions, and builds public and professional awareness on important environmental topics. The center hosts or participates in a number of public programs that are free and open to the public. Urban Sustainability Forums feature panels of local and national experts discussing environmental and sustainability.

Planning Your Visit

Located in the heart of Philadelphia’s Museums District, the Academy brings science to life through a world-renowned collection of specimens and living animals. The museum is the place for young and old to experience nature and the environment in a fun and engaging way. Skip waiting for The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University tickets at the museum and discover big savings with a Philadelphia CityPASS® ticket instead. This ticket lets you explore all of the while saving up to compared to buying individual attraction tickets. You can purchase three different CityPASS® tickets to see three, four, or five of Philadelphia's most popular attractions, including the , The Franklin Institute, Philadelphia Zoo, and more. Saving money on tickets leaves you with more in your wallet to explore this incredible city's rich history and culture, so snag your Philadelphia CityPASS® tickets now. To get the most out of your stay in Philadelphia, we recommend finding lodging near Philadelphia's top attractions.

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