Special exhibition to the end of June 2027
As part of the future plan for the Museum für Naturkunde, the collection room of the historical bird collection with around 11,500 specimens is being renovated. For the approximately 11,500 specimens, this means: please move out temporarily!
Image gallery
Exponate der Sonderausstellungen Zukunftsplan & ZUGvögel
The Museum für Naturkunde has taken this as an opportunity for a unique special exhibition, in which the historical bird specimens and visitors' suggestions take centre stage.
To this end, all the specimens were cleaned, photographed and packed in transport boxes. Instead of storing the boxes behind closed doors, the museum uses them as an element of the exhibition architecture.
The museum's exhibition team spoke to more than 350 people for the special exhibition. Their perspectives, associations and questions about the bird specimens form the basis of the exhibition themes.
From the history and origins of the collection to the diversity of species and characteristics of birds, to environmental protection, research and the diverse relationships between humans and birds, the resulting exhibition is now as diverse as the bird world itself.
History of the collection
The museum's bird collection comprises 200,000 objects and covers around 80% of all bird species.
In ZUGvögel - Eine Sammlung in Bewegung, a small part of this collection is on display: the historical specimens. In total, there are around 11,500 objects. In addition to the bird world of Brandenburg and Germany, it includes many objects from former European colonies in South America, Africa, South-East Asia and New Guinea as well as from other parts of Asia.
The specimens are part of the museum's scientific bird collection, which also includes bird skins, skeletons, nests, eggs, alcohol and wing specimens.
Many of the objects in this collection were prepared over 200 years ago and are therefore older than the museum itself. The collection was established as part of the university collection as early as 1810
Today's Museum für Naturkunde opened its doors in 1889 and most of the objects on display in ZUGvögel- Eine Sammlung in Bewegung were part of the original collection.
Once prepared, natural history collections outlast entire epochs. In their ‘second life’, the objects become contemporary witnesses to history.
Bird species and characteristics
There are around 11,000 different bird species worldwide. All birds have feathers, a beak and they lay eggs. They range in size from tiny to majestic, from dazzlingly colourful to grey. They include seed eaters, nectar drinkers, insect hunters, predators and scavengers. They build nests, perform courtship dances, use tools and are excellent singers.
Their feathered wings have given them the ability to fly. Some species have perfected their flying skills, others have lost them completely in the course of evolution, such as ostriches and kiwis.
Around 20 % of all species living today are migratory birds: they take to the skies twice a year and sometimes cover tens of thousands of kilometres on their journey.
In total, there are six times as many birds as people in the world: around 50 billion individuals.
