Florida Museum of Natural History in Gainesville largest of its kind in southeast

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The Florida Museum of Natural History is located on the campus of the University of Florida in Gainesville. 

"We hope that families can come and enjoy themselves, just be together and learn new things and be inspired to care about life on Earth," said Darcie MacMahon, associate director of the museum.

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The Florida Museum of Natural History is the largest natural history museum in the southeast United States. They have nearly 40 million objects in their scientific collections. 

The museum has permanent exhibits that range from fossils found in Florida to live butterflies in their Butterfly Rainforest. 

All the exhibits, both permanent and temporary, combine different methods of learning, so people of different ages can interact and learn at the same time. 

"We have a lot of immersive environments. You can really experience the moment of being lost in time or in an environment that you’re not familiar with," says MacMahon. 

The Florida Museum of Natural History is open seven days a week. Check their website for current exhibits.