The Language of Color

Through September 6, 2009

Whether it’s the brilliant blue wings of a butterfly, the scarlet feathers of a tanager, or the stripes of a zebra, animals display color in vastly different ways and for different reasons. Combining dramatic specimens with video presentations, computer interactives, hands-on activities, and a stunning display of live dart frogs, The Language of Color will help visitors understand the nature of color and pattern, how different animals “see” it, and how animal color and its perception have co-evolved to produce the complex and diverse palette of colors we see in the world today. The exhibit features a wide array of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, mollusks, and insect specimens that illustrate colors used to camouflage, startle predators, mimic other animals, attract a mate, or intimidate a rival. 

Watch a tour of the new exhibit presented by Curator of Mammals at the Museum of Comparative Zoology and Professor of Biology at Harvard University, Hopi Hoekstra. 

Image credit: Paul Bratescu/AnimalExplorer.com

Climate Change: Our Global Experiment

Ongoing 

Developed in collaboration with the Harvard University Center for the Environment Climate Change: Our Global Experiment will help you separate truth from spin and provide a basis for making informed decisions affecting the future of our planet. The exhibit offers an insider’s look at the scientific study of climate, presenting the latest research from renowned experts at Harvard and around the world. Get the facts, draw your own conclusions, then take part in a unique computer simulation that allows you to choose a course of action and see the consequences for the planet.

Dodos, Trilobites, & Meteorites…Treasures of Nature and Science at Harvard

Ongoing 

This exhibition showcases never-before-seen treasures from historic expeditions that explored the depths of the oceans, Tibetan mountain peaks, the Brazilian Amazon, America’s western frontier, and other remote environments then unknown to science. It features meteorites and 2 billion-year-old microfossil specimens that offer clues about the formation of the Earth and the origins of its myriad life forms.

Also view a small display of Blaschkas' stunning glass sea creatures including sea anemone, jellies, and slugs.