Natural History Blog

Explore the natural heritage of Ohio from the state’s ancient bedrock, its Paleozoic marine fossils to the state’s modern flora and fauna.

1-10 of 163 Blog Posts

November 13, 2023

The World’s Smallest Carnivore – in Ohio!?

By David Dyer, Natural History Curator When we think of extremes in the animal kingdom we don’t tend to think of such species as being in Ohio. The largest, smallest, and heaviest animals we assume are in more exotic locales. Let’s test your knowledge; see if you can name the following species (answers are at […]

July 28, 2023

Birds of a Feather: The Smithsonian and OHC Natural History Collections

Join Dave Dyer, Natural History Curator, and Marie Swartz, Archaeology Curator, on a journey that intertwines ornithology, archaeology, and natural history, revealing the significance of collaborative research in unraveling the secrets of the past. One of the basic tenets of a scientific collection is that the data associated with the specimens is as important […]

March 15, 2023

Natural History’s “Green” collections

In honor of the St. Patrick’s Day holiday we delved into our Natural History collections to showcase five of our green specimens and tell their stories!

February 20, 2023

The Deep Woods Insect Collection

By David Dyer, Natural History Curator When we were first contacted about the possible donation of a Deep Woods collection I was immediately intrigued. As a hiker who seeks out trail-less wilderness areas around the country, the concept of “deep woods” is never far from my thoughts (and no, not the insect repellant!). As I […]

January 24, 2023

Four Outdoor Natural History Sites You Should Visit this Winter (+ our picks for a coffee or hot chocolate stop for after your visit!)

Get bundled up and head out to one of these Ohio History Connection sites this winter to get out of the house and get a new perspective on our state’s incredible natural history.

August 23, 2022

Peering Back In Time – 19th Century Microscope Slides of William Sullivant

An unassuming dark wooden cabinet on the shelves in the collections revealed beautiful 19th century microscope slides from William Sullivant.

April 27, 2022

Ask a Curator: Natural History and Archaeology Object Identification Event

Join our curatorial team as we help our visitors to determine what it is they think they have in their own personal collection.

April 22, 2022

How to Find a Mastodon – The Story of the Williams Mastodon

By David Dyer, Natural History Curator, with Emily George Emily George was on a mission. She had heard about the Williams mastodon while growing up, and about how her grandfather Gus George had helped excavate the skeleton in Columbus in the mid-1950s. After talking with her family about the mastodon for a school genealogy project […]

January 18, 2022

What is it? – Identification of Natural History Objects

Many interesting natural objects can be found while out hiking, walking along a streambed, or digging on your property.

October 8, 2021

Restoring a Sense of Wonder

“I fell in love with every bird I met and everything they did. Their world, my world, was all new. I swooned to kinglets, warblers, tanagers...

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