Jonathan T · @JonnyT
342 followers · 957 posts · Server mastodon.me.uk

This is a reproduction of one of my earliest posts on this platform (foolishly, I let them all auto-delete). It's the Missouri Leviathan. Aka the American Mastodon.

Now housed in the central hall of , this fossil was unearthed as part of a 'graveyard' of Mastodon fossils by Albert Koch in 1840.

It's fair to say that Koch, being a showman interested in making money, took some liberties with his reconstruction of the fossilised animals he had found...

(1/5)

#fossilfriday #NHMLondon

Last updated 1 year ago

GBIF 🌱 · @gbif
1250 followers · 202 posts · Server ecoevo.social

United Kingdom returns as GBIF Voting Participant 🎉 🥳 🇬🇧

With its renewed commitment, the UK rejoins 42 other countries that fund GBIF’s core global budget and signals support of national stakeholder community led by
gbif.org/news/11u1bN9BR32mDEhP

#NBNAtlas #NHMLondon #kew #jncc #DEFRA

Last updated 1 year ago

Jonathan T · @JonnyT
244 followers · 1857 posts · Server mastodon.me.uk

@u0421793 @futurebird @haaadr @klara Even live butterfly exhibits at natural history museums (looking at you ) feature tropical butterflies and no native ones. What a missed opportunity every single year.

#NHMLondon

Last updated 2 years ago

Jonathan T · @JonnyT
236 followers · 1491 posts · Server mastodon.me.uk
Jonathan T · @JonnyT
235 followers · 1432 posts · Server mastodon.me.uk

My last boost has reminded me of the Schmidt Sting Pain Index, where one man took not just one but several in the name of science.

provides a sampling of his poetic observations of what it's like to be stung by various venomous insects:

'Torture. You are chained in the flow of an active volcano. Why did I start this list?'

Indeed.

nhm.ac.uk/scroller-schmidt-pai

#NHMLondon

Last updated 2 years ago

Jonathan T · @JonnyT
228 followers · 1300 posts · Server mastodon.me.uk

I'll confess I know practically nothing about my for today, but it's one of my favourites at the , solely because of the quality of the preservation of the whole animal as seen in this close up (of what I assume is a high-quality cast).

The label is potentially inaccurate because it's in the Fossil Marine Reptiles gallery, and I don't think they've been updated in there for decades:

Marine crocodile
Mystriosaurus bollensis
187-178 million years old
Lower Jurassic.

#fossilfriday #NHMLondon

Last updated 2 years ago

Plazi Species · @plazi_species
124 followers · 107 posts · Server mastodon.green
Jonathan T · @JonnyT
193 followers · 774 posts · Server mastodon.me.uk

One of the niceties of the Archaeopteryx display is that they've also included the top side of the limestone slab that was split to reveal the fossil.

There is less obvious detail in the top side due to most of the fossilised bones being in the bottom side, but the traces of the tail bones and other features are apparent.

In the animation, the top side has been inverted so a comparison between the two pieces is possible - in reality, it is a mirror image of the bottom side.

#NHMLondon

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
892 followers · 733 posts · Server fediscience.org

@clew Our cupboards are fully standardised and the sheets need to have the same size (we have about 2 million herbarium specimens, we can't have individual sheet sizes).
The does have bigger sheets but those are only used for ferns, palms and cycads because those plants are often bigger. All other land plants are mounted on the "smaller" sheets (the NHM London has quite big sheets compared to other herbaria).

#NHMLondon

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
825 followers · 637 posts · Server fediscience.org

One wouldn't mount specimens like this anymore, but this one from does have an artistic appeal.
@museum

#curatorlife #herbariumlife #modernart #mastoart #NHMLondon #Herbarium

Last updated 2 years ago

Bob Harvey · @BobHarvey
21 followers · 138 posts · Server twit.social

This is really interesting. Not quite sure how many applecarts it upsets.

bristol.ac.uk/news/2022/decemb
"A specimen retrieved from a cupboard of the Natural History Museum in London has shown that modern lizards originated in the Late Triassic and not the Middle Jurassic as previously thought."

#paleontology #bristoluniversity #NHMLondon #fossil #fossilfriday #science

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
800 followers · 611 posts · Server fediscience.org

The is presenting its#HiddenTreasures show live, now! youtube.com/watch?v=UIdl12qss8

See and vote for the ultimate hidden at the NHM !

#london #treasure #NHMLondon

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
784 followers · 588 posts · Server fediscience.org

Day 30 - ‘Why Museum 30?'
Why posting 30 things about ? Because museums are more than the people visit. Museums have many objects visitors usually don't get to see (for various reasons not because we wouldn't want to), aspects people usually wouldn't think and people wouldn't know about. The in the is one of the lesser known parts. I hope got to know 'us' a bit better. :)
Stay curious!

#museodon #NHMLondon #Herbarium #exhibitions #museums #Museum30

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
768 followers · 584 posts · Server fediscience.org

Day 28 - ‘Walls'
Quite in contrast to the amazing terracotta walls of the Waterhouse Building (the old part of the ), the walls in the General are more practical: white painted concrete. Except for a few posters to guide the users through our geographical systematic arrangement of the collections, we don't have much decoration.
A bit more colour offer the walls in the open plan office. A soothing pale violet.

#Herbarium #NHMLondon #Museum30

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
757 followers · 576 posts · Server fediscience.org

Day 27 - ‘Plan'
The is not just only big, it is actually like a maze. I'm regularly amazed to be shown new weird stairways around. Did you know, we have half storeys? I'm sure there is a plan, but an M.C. painting will make more sense, I guess.

#escher #NHMLondon #Museum30

Last updated 2 years ago

Sandra Álvarez · @sabifo4
43 followers · 12 posts · Server genomic.social

Yesterday, @LMolinerCachazo (Twitter) led a visit at the as part of an activity.

We had the opportunity to meet Dr Michael Geiser, curator, who was a pleasure listening to and learning from! We were all amazed by how big the collection of the most species-rich group index is -- but only ~10% of the species are known!

Dr Geiser showed us some of the shiniest, smallest, and largest specimens; we even saw some of the beetles collected by Darwin and Wallace! (1/n)

#NHMLondon #srukceru #coleoptera

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
743 followers · 546 posts · Server fediscience.org

Day 24 - ‘On screen'
I haven't been on screen as like TV so far, but I did a small video for the on . It was supposed to be a short video, so we had to focus on one specific aspect. I would have loved to tell more.
youtube.com/watch?v=OLu1oW6rRr

#peanuts #NHMLondon #Museum30

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
724 followers · 535 posts · Server fediscience.org

Museum30 Day 23 - ‘Collage'
specimens are made for or nowadays. However, having plant collections was something like a nice to show around in the past, maybe similar to collecting stamps, baseball cards or car models.
The also has some of those collections, which have much more of an ornamental focus. Quite often, other material was added to make it look prettier, which then is like a of beautiful

#mastoart #plants #collage #NHMLondon #hobby #teaching #science #Herbarium

Last updated 2 years ago

Norbert Holstein · @dr_norb
715 followers · 528 posts · Server fediscience.org

Museum30 Day 22 - ‘Orange'
Quite often, colours of fade when they dry. specimens therefore often look a bit disappointing. Some flowers, however, like this leonurus (wild ) from keep their well. The is still amazingly bright in these two collections from the are 185 and 250 years old respectively. 😍😍😍

#NHMLondon #orange #colour #southafrica #dagga #leonotis #Herbarium #flowers

Last updated 2 years ago

bloom · @bloom
27 followers · 62 posts · Server piaille.fr

Ce musée (this museum) 😱

#NaturalHistoryMuseums #london #NHMLondon

Last updated 2 years ago