Welcome to the Department of Museum Research and Collections!
We oversee the management and curation of the Alabama Museum of Natural History collections and develop interdisciplinary research programs focusing on museum-based research. Browse this site to learn more about who we are and what we do.
Along with the rest of the Nation, The University of Alabama Museums has watched as recent events including the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor have fractured our communities. Violence, disparity, and acts of hatred contradict the University’s core principles of fostering a culture of inclusivity, diversity, and respect for every member of our community. The UA Museums stand behind these values as we use this time to advocate for reflection, opportunities for change, and engagement with marginalized communities. We are committed to dismantling systemic racism and seek to be a strong symbol of hope, equality, and inclusivity, bringing people together to discover and enjoy the incredible natural and cultural resources of our region.
To celebrate its 200th anniversary of statehood, the State of Alabama created the Alabama Bicentennial Park in the heart of historic Montgomery and commissioned artist Caleb O’Connor to design a series of sixteen sculptural works depicting the state’s full history, from fossils to moon rockets.
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Maybe you’ve seen the headlines: soon, hundreds of millions of cicadas will emerge after 17 years of living underground and swarm cities all over the eastern United States.
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Millions of cicadas are about to swarm the East Coast. Don’t panic! It’s totally normal. These cicadas, known as periodical cicadas, have been 6 feet underground for 17 years. From June to August, they will come above ground in waves in Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina.
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New research unveiled the earliest evidence of octopus predation in the fossil record. The evidence consists of tiny holes drilled in the clams they preyed upon during the Cretaceous period about 75 million years ago.
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At the Alabama Museum of Natural History, we are removing the Kodiak bear from the Grand Gallery in preparation of a new exhibit! Here’s a video of what that looks and sounds like. Stay tuned for more behind-the-scenes updates on our progress!
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In the Fall of 2017, then Curator of Paleontology Dana Ehret, and Director of Museum Research and Collections John Abbott received a $22,384 grant (MA-31-17-0466-17) from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to rehouse and digitize a part of the fossil invertebrate collection.
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