Carnegie Museum of Natural History

10/23/2026

Migration is one of the most dangerous periods in a bird's life, yet protecting migratory species requires understanding where they stop to rest, feed, and navigate along the way.

Join Dr. Lucas DeGroote, Avian Conservation Scientist at Carnegie Museum of Natural History's Powdermill Avian Research Center, as he shares research tracing the journeys of North American landbirds through forests, agricultural landscapes, and urban environments. During our next R.W. Moriarty Science Seminar, learn how scientists are identifying critical habitats used during migration and exploring practical solutions, including high-contrast window markers, that can help prevent bird collisions and save lives.

Whether you're a bird enthusiast, conservation advocate, or simply curious about migration, this free talk offers a fascinating look at the challenges birds face and the science helping to protect them.

📅 Thursday, November 5, 2026
⏰ 6–7 p.m.
📍 Carnegie Museum of Art Theater or online via Zoom
🎟 Free admission; museum admission not required

« All Events R.W. Moriarty Science Seminar: What Migrating Birds Risk and Need November 5, 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm At the Museum Event Navigation « Sensory Friendly Trick-or-Treat Powdermill Family Nature Walk » Talk: What Migrating Birds Risk and Need Speaker: Dr. Lucas DeGroote When: Thursday, Novemb...

10/20/2026

🦫🌊 Meet Dongoconodon platycauda. This recently-discovered 120-million-year-old species is the earliest confirmed swimming mammal known to science.

Published in Nature Communications, this illuminating discovery includes research by Carnegie Museum of Natural History's Head of the Section of Mammals, John Wible. The exceptionally preserved fossil reveals a semiaquatic mammal with webbed feet, evidence of repeated tooth replacement, and a critical transitional stage in the evolution of the mammalian middle ear.

Together, these findings are helping scientists rethink how key mammalian traits evolved during the age of dinosaurs.

Read the full article in Nature Portfolio: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-77339-w

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[1] Dongoconodon platycauda; Illustration: Paul Bowden
[2] A: Photograph in dorsal view. B: Line drawing. cd1–19, 1 to 19 caudal vertebrae; cr cranium; fe femur; fi fibula; hu humerus; il ilium; is ischium; m mandible; r1-22 first to 22 ribs; ra radius; sc scapula; ti tibia; ul ulna; left and right sides indicated as (l) and (r), respectively.

10/15/2026

🐌👻 Enjoy this seasonally spooky snail joke courtesy of the one and only Tim Pearce, then get your tickets for Haunted Museum this Friday, October 16, at Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

Secure your tickets now: https://carnegiemnh.org/event/haunted-museum-18/

10/09/2026

For one night only, go where most museum visitors never can.

During Haunted Museum on Friday, October 16, you can get exclusive access to Carnegie Museum of Natural History research collections that are normally closed to the public.

Meet the experts behind the science, explore remarkable specimens up close, and discover the stories hidden behind the scenes during a tour of our 🪲 Invertebrate Zoology Collection and 🐍 Amphibians & Reptiles Collection .

🎃 Haunted Museum (18+)
📅 Friday, October 16
⏰ Tours at 6:30 & 7:30 p.m.
🎟️ $50 per tour

Get your tickets today: https://carnegiemnh.org/event/haunted-museum-18/
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Photos: Warhol Creative

10/06/2026

🌔 Ghosts, cryptids, creepy-crawlies, and a museum after dark.

On Friday, October 16, Haunted Museum returns with strange specimens, spooky encounters, hands-on activities, and plenty of Halloween fun the curious. Come in costume and explore the weird, wild, and wonderfully strange. 🕸️🔍

🎃 Friday, October 16
🕕 6-10 p.m.
🎟️ $30 ($25 for members)
👻 18+ only

Get your tickets today: https://carnegiemnh.org/event/haunted-museum-18/

10/05/2026

What role does curiosity play in shaping how we understand the world?

Join Carnegie Museum of Natural History for R.W. Moriarty Science Seminar: The Power of Curiosity with Emily Graslie, acclaimed science communicator, creator of The Brain Scoop, and the first woman to host a science program for PBS in Prehistoric Road Trip.

During this free lecture, Graslie will share how following her curiosity has taken her from the bat caves of Kenya to the forefront of science communication and discuss why nurturing inquisitive minds is more critical than ever.

📅 Thursday, October 15, 2026
🕕 6:00–7:00 p.m.
📍 Art Theater and online via Zoom
🎟️ Free; museum admission not required. Registration required.

Register online: https://carnegiemnh.org/event/r-w-moriarty-science-seminar-the-power-of-curiosity-with-emily-graslie/

09/26/2026

Witness the drama of nature up close in our Halls of African and North American wildlife! With more than 30 dioramas spanning the major ecosystems of North America and biomes of Africa, these halls are filled with unforgettable scenes that will capture your imagination.

Planning a visit this weekend? Heads up! Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History will open at noon tomorrow, Sunday, September 27 due to The Pittsburgh Great Race 2026.

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Hall of African Wildlife, 2026; photo: Warhol Creative

09/24/2026

Earlier this week, 59th Carnegie International artist Ginger Brooks Takahashi and Carnegie Museum of Natural History curator of Botany Mason Heberling, created specimen sheets using plants from Brooks Takahashi’s Perilla People’s Garden. These specimens have entered the Section of Botany’s collection, documenting this artwork for generations to come.

Commissioned for the 59th Carnegie International—currently on view at Carnegie Museum of Art—the Perilla People’s Garden is situated in front of the museum and consists of various cultivars of Perilla frutescens, a plant known as deulkkae in Korean and shiso in Japanese. This garden creates a social space where these plants offer ways to understand ancestral connections through scent and taste.

Be sure to experience the Perilla People’s Garden during your next visit to the museum.

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Photos: Zachary Riggleman

09/17/2026

No visit to Carnegie Museum of Natural History is complete without a journey through Kamin Hall of Dinosaurs.

Home to our world-renowned collection of fossils the exhibition showcases more than 200 extraordinary fossils within immersive prehistoric environments, revealing how life evolved across millions of years. Several of these skeletons—including those of the iconic dinosaurs Apatosaurus louisae, Diplodocus carnegii, and Tyrannosaurus rex—are holotypes, the original specimens upon which their respective species are based.

Did you know? Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History are open until 8 p.m. every Thursday! Visit us online to make your plans: https://carnegiemnh.org/

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Photo: Warhol Creative

09/15/2026

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Carey Scheide Miller on her appointment as the Daniel G. and Carole L. Kamin Director of Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

Since joining Carnegie Museums in 2023 as Vice President and Chief Development Officer, Dr. Miller has helped lead record-breaking philanthropic support across our museums and, as Interim Director since January 2026, has advanced initiatives that strengthen visitor experiences, scientific discovery, and community engagement.

With more than 25 years of leadership in philanthropy and higher education, Dr. Miller brings a deep commitment to stewardship, collaboration, and the museum's mission of science, research, and education. We look forward to this exciting new chapter under her leadership.