Current DSNH, Boonshoft, SunWatch Projects

Paleo Lab NOW OPEN

Welcome to our Paleo lab where we have dinosaur specimens, a dig pit, foam dino puzzles, and an opportunity to watch our amazing paleontology team (led by Paleontologist, Ray Vodden) articulate our hadrosaur skeleton!

Our hadrosaur is lovingly called TC, after Tim McClelland, the property owner where the skeleton was found in Butte County South Dakota. It was excavated in 2001, purchased at auction by Peter Thaler, then donated to the Dayton Society of Natural History. Articulating this amazing dinosaur is quite the undertaking and will be a several year project.

We would like to thank our generous funders, the Kettering Family Philanthropies and the Tait Foundation, who made this project possible. We would also like to thank the Boonshoft team and volunteers for their hard work and dedication in realizing this amazing exhibition. We hope the Paleo Lab serves as an inspiration for curious minds to learn about the ancient past.

The Bieser Room of Wonders

The Bieser Room of Wonders: Is now open to the Public. A complete transformation of the Bieser Discovery Center has been completed on the first floor of the museum. The final step in a multi-year project to better display more artifacts from our 1.8 million object collection. It is a family friendly learning environment, with an emphasis on discovery. In this space you are able to see some of our impressive collection like never before, taking a deeper look at our history and learn why natural history museums are so important to current and future generations.

The Bieser Room of Wonders

SunWatch Upgrades

SunWatch NEH Grant: A multi-year project has begun the construction phase. Through a matching grant for capital improvements by the National Endowment for the Humanities, we are making some much needed updates to the SunWatch Interpretive Center! These are updates that will help make the site safer, such as parking lot lighting, added security, and more accessibility; while updating some aesthetics like our observation deck and repaving the parking lot.

The Mole-rats are Here!

Our colony of Mole-rats came from the San Diego Zoo in late September. Naked mole-rats are the only eusocial mammal, meaning they have a social system like bees or ants, with a queen, workers, etc. Only the queen gives birth to the young and can have up to 20 babies at a time. We are sure guests of all ages will enjoy these ‘wonderfully weird’ animals! Mole-rats have so many features unique to the animal kingdom, and the new habitat allows you to view the colony as they go about their daily tasks.

White Allen Racetrack

Our racetrack has moved! Our racetrack, sponsored by White Allen, is a guest favorite. It is now located across from the Vet Hospital on the second floor. Formerly located in our rentals space, it was sometimes off display much to the disappointment of our guests. Now in its new location it is always available! Kiddos have a blast playing with toy cars and balls on the life size track. Make sure you check it out on your next visit.