Current Exhibits
Temporary Exhibitions
Inside Africa | March 15 - Sept. 7, 2008
Journey into the heart of Africa and experience its people and rich cultural history. Based on "Africa," a permanent exhibition at the Field Museum in Chicago, this exhibit takes visitors through a journey to selected sites on the world's second-largest continent and offers a deeper understanding of the vitality, richness and significance of its people from historical and contemporary perspectives.
Namibia -The Smile of Africa | April 3 - Aug. 3, 2008
This collection of work in the Galleria by artist Mary Jane Volkmann depicts life in Namibia among its native peoples. Inspired by 28 years living and working in Namibia, Volkmann's exhibit includes original paintings, a collection of prints and various issues of her work used as postage stamps.
Charles R. Knight: Studies of Lost Worlds | April 21, 2007 - Jan. 31, 2009
Seven study paintings by Charles R. Knight, the first and the most renowned "paleo-artist" of all time are on display in the Hall of Florida Fossils. Knight's murals depicting ancient life grace the halls of America's greatest natural history museums. The paintings include many animals that once lived in Florida, and Knight visited the state many times throughout the late 1800s and early 1900s.
Butterflies and Moths in Contemporary Zuni Art | Dec. 3, 2007 - Dec. 31, 2008
This exhibit highlights the role of butterflies in the belief system and art of contemporary Zuni people, Native Americans who live in the high desert of the American southwest. Many Zuni traditional arts feature butterflies and moths, and this tradition continues today in their fine arts, crafts and tourist art forms.
Discovery Room | July 2, 2007 - Dec. 31, 2008
Swim through the shallows of a coral reef, puzzle together a prairie and create creatures from Florida's ecosystems in our self-guided discovery stations. Visit our hands-on Discovery Room filled with activities and join us during scheduled program times for stories, puppets, Museum exploration with Dr. Discovery and more! Open every day until 4:30 p.m.
Permanent Exhibit Halls
Butterfly Rainforest: Where Science Takes Flight!
Stroll through this 6,400-square-foot screened, outdoor enclosure with subtropical and tropical plants and hundreds of living butterflies. View thousands of Lepidoptera species on the "Wall of Wings" and learn about butterfly and moth biology. See scientists working in the Butterfly Rearing Lab and the Research Labs.
Florida Fossils: Evolution of Life & Land
Drawing upon the Florida Museum's internationally acclaimed fossil collections, this award-winning exhibit describes the last 65 million years of Florida's history. Walk through time beginning with the Eocene, when Florida was underwater, to the Pleistocene when the first humans arrived 14,000 years ago. More than 90 percent of the 500 fossils are real and many were found within 100 miles of Gainesville.
Northwest Florida: Waterways & Wildlife
This exhibit follows water as it flows through the unique environments of northwest Florida, the most biodiverse region of the state. Explore a hardwood hammock featuring a life-sized limestone cave, a seepage bog with its carnivorous plants, a Native American trading scene and more.
South Florida People & Environments
This exhibit celebrates the story of native people in South Florida and the environments that supported them. Walk along a boardwalk through a mangrove forest, travel underwater to view larger-than-life marine creatures, visit the house of a Calusa leader and much more.
Outdoor Exhibits
Florida Wildflower & Butterfly Garden
Located just west of the Museum, this demonstration garden showcases Florida's native wildflowers and their importance as host and nectar plants for Florida's native butterflies. It encourages visitors to imagine how they could transform their own yards into an inviting and colorful, yet practical and water-saving mecca for butterflies and other wildlife.
Fossil Plant Garden
Located next to the Florida Museum's main entrance, this garden is landscaped with modern species of plants whose ancestors lived millions of years ago and are preserved as fossils in many places around the world.
Floor Plan Map
Get a detailed map of the Museum along with descriptions of current and upcoming exhibits:
Download the Florida Museum Floor Plan Map (PDF)