Top view of two skulls on a black table. Left skull is a American crocodile with a v-shaped snout, right is an American alligator with a u-shaped snout

Close-up, side view of crocodile skull

🏆🐊🐋 #2026mmm Championship

So what’s the difference between crocodiles & alligators?

Though both are crocodilians but belong to different families!

Alligators: U-shaped snouts & generally less aggressive

Crocodiles: V-shaped snouts & are more territorial

#AUMNH #AuburnUniversity #TeamCroc

🦎 #That'sSoMetal matchup day advice from our Staff Curator of Tetrapods, David Laurencio!

Who do you have winning this fierce battle?

#2026MMM #AuburnUniversity #AUMNH #Herpetology #GilaMonster #TeamGilaMonster

🦇Dr. Wendy Hood is here to talk about her adventures down in #CostaRica! She has some insight on one of the competitors in #2026MMM, the Fringed-lipped Bat

Who do you have winning this #That'sSoMetal matchup?

🦇📷: Camaya Doxie

#AuburnUniversity #AUMNH #FringedLippedBat #MarchMammalMadness

Graphic with text: Meet the museum team, Jordan, GIS Analyst, Alabama Natural Heritage Program with logo. Within the graphic is a photo of a woman wearing glasses smiling at the camera holding a clear container with fish inside.

A woman wearing glasses and a hat smiling at the camera holding a clear container with fish inside.

A woman wearing protective gear standing next to a dry landscape with spots of burning grass.

✨Meet Jordan✨

🌳Jordan is our GIS Analyst with the Alabama Natural Heritage Program. She maintains data on species of conservation concern.

🔥She also loves helping with prescribed burns whenever she can!

📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday!

#aumnh #alnhp #auburnuniversity

Two women behind a table with museum displays of pinned insects

Flyer for Columbus botanical garden’s Kid’s Day, birds bugs and blooms bioblitz

Come see us at the Columbus Botanical gardens to learn more about beetles and butterflies! Today from 1-4pm 🪲🦋

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #columbusbotanicalgardena #kidsday

🐊 Here’s some words from our Staff Curator of Herpetology, David Laurencio on tonight’s MMM Library Legends matchup: Nile Crocodile vs Papyrus!

Who did you have winning this beastly battle?

#2026MMM #AuburnUniversity #AUMNH #Herpetology #NileCrocodile

🏆 Would you take the Uropygi or the Southern Grasshopper Mouse?
‼️Make your bracket by TONIGHT at 11:59

🔗 aub.ie/marchmammalm...

#SpecimenSpotlight #Vinegaroon #Uropygi #Arachnids #AUMNH #AuburnUniversity #2026MMM

👀 Stealth and spider security… or speed and venomous precision?

🏆 Who do you think will win the #wildcard round of #2026MMM?

#aumnh #specimenspotlight

Graphic with text: Meet the museum team, Jamie, Curator of Herpetology, Museum of Natural History at Auburn University with fish logo. Within the graphic is a phot of a mountain view with man wearing a hat smiling at the camera next to a monkey.

A group of adults sitting on a large moss covered rock in the foggy rainforest.

Two men looking at a crocodile on a platform. One is standing and the other is holding the crocodile behind its head.

✨Meet Jamie✨
 
🐊Jamie Oaks is a Curator of Herpetology & his research focuses on understanding the processes responsible for our planet’s biodiversity, using the reptiles of Southeast Asia as a model
 
📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday! 

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #cosam

Join the #AUMNH competition for bragging rights and a chance to win swag!

🔗 aub.ie/MMM26

#2026MMM

That Friday Feeling is brought to you by Bagel the Eastern box turtle on her morning adventure!

#aumnh #arboretum #cosam #auburnuniversity #fridayfeels

⚠️Camp Registration for Curious Curators Opens TOMORROW

Register⬇️
🔗 aub.ie/sciencematters

#aumnh #cosam #sciencematters #auburnuniversity

Instagram Create an account or log in to Instagram - Share what you're into with the people who get you.

Celebrating all the unstoppable women and girls from yesterday's International Day of Women and Girls in Science! 🔬🧪🐟🪲💪

#aumnh #womeninstem #auburnuniversity

www.instagram.com/reel/DUok8wl...

✨Meet Ray!✨

🦴Ray Willhite teaches anatomy at AUCVM and is our Curator of Paleontology. He researches
sauropod dinosaurs, alligators, sloths, and giraffes. He loves teaching and inspiring
students!

📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday!

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #cosam #vetmed

🐎Protohippus gidleyi lived millions of years ago in Alabama!

This three-toed, ancient horse shows early adaptations to grasslands. Its worn teeth helped
grind plants, and its fossils tell the story of horse evolution in our state.

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #YearOfTheHorse #FossilFriday

🪰 🐎 Kicking off Year of the Horse, insect-style!

This paratype of horse-fly species (Tabanus wilsoni) was described in 1962. With over 3,000 species in Tabaninae, paratypes help scientists document natural variation and insect diversity!

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #YearOfTheHorse #tabanide

Did someone say 2016??

#throwback #throwback2016 #aumnh #thowbacktuesday

✨Please welcome our NEW Director, Brian! ✨

🦋Brian researches how genetics & the environment shape development. He has spent decades studying butterfly wing patterns and loves combining
fieldwork and lab research!

📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday!

#aumnh #cosam #auburnuniversity

AU Museum Of Natural History on Instagram: "Show us your best selfie for Museum Selfie Day! #aumnh #auburnuniversity #museumselfieday" 1 likes, 0 comments - aumnh on January 21, 2026: "Show us your best selfie for Museum Selfie Day! #aumnh #auburnuniversity #museumselfieday".

📸Show us your best selfie for Museum Selfie Day!

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #museumselfieday

www.instagram.com/reel/DTyhBCo...

✨Meet Francesca✨

🐍Our ALNHP researcher studies Eastern Indigo Snakes & other endangered species. She loves spending time in the field with reptiles and amphibians and enjoys scuba diving, reading, baking, and traveling!

📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday!

#alnhp #aumnh #auburnuniversity

Happy #FossilFriday!

🦴Our paleontology curator, Ray Willhite, was featured on the Prehistoric Life Podcast doing a deep dive into sauropod limbs

Check out the full episode
🔗 youtube.com/clip/UgkxXBo...

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #paleontology #sauropods #anatomy #prehistoriclifepodcast

Small beetle. Big survival skills. 🐞

As larvae, the palmetto tortoise beetles (Hemisphaerota cyanea) hide under nests made of their own fecal thatch to hide from predators!

📸1: Matt Edmonds
📸2&3: Melissa Callahan

#coleoptera #tortoisebeetle #specimenspotlight #aumnh #auburnuniversity
#entomology

✨ Meet Al! ✨

🌻Our Botanist has spent 30+ years studying AL's rarest plant life. He’s worked on conservation plans, monitoring and assessing plants. He enjoys photography, farming, and outdoor adventures!

📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday!

#MuseumMonday #alnhp #aumnh #auburnuniversity

✨🎊Ringing in the New Year with colors inspired by Pantone’s color of the year (Cloud Dancer) with colors from the natural world!

What is your favorite pick for 2026?

#pantone #coloroftheyear #aumnh #auburnuniversity #specimenspotlight

✨ Meet Joe! ✨

🦎 Joe Jenkins is a Research Associate with #ALNHP He conducts research relevant to conservation of AL herps, like the Flattened Musk Turtle. He enjoys hunting to feed himself with wild game!

📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday!

#MuseumMonday #aumnh #auburnunviersity

Photo of scientist Dr. Morgan Muell in the forest smiling and holding a temperature sensor with the words “Graduate Student Spotlight Morgan Muell” and “Museum of Natural History at Auburn University”

Morgan Muell in front of a table with exhibits of ocean animal specimens.

#congrats to Dr. Morgan Muell, who completed her #PhD! 🎉

Morgan has contributed over 700 specimens to the #AUMNH collection and helped countless hours with our outreach department, including working as a camp counselor for our past two summers at Curious Curators!

🪿✨Calling all birders! ✨🪿

Help contribute to the Auburn Christmas Bird Count on Wed, 12/17!

Learn more on our website:
🔗 aumnh.auburn.edu/citizen_scie...

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #ornitology #birdwatching #citizenscience #christmasbirdcount #cbc #audubon #fieldworkfriday #fromthefieldfriday

✨ Meet Jim! ✨

🦎 Our Staff Zoologist has spent 30+ years studying AL's amphibians & reptiles. He’s worked on Indigo Snake reintroduction, turtle research, and eDNA surveys—and loves exploring waterways!

📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday!

#MuseumMonday #alnhp #aumnh #auburnunviersity

✨Meet Geoff! ✨

🦚Dr. Geoff Hill is a Professor and Curator of Birds. His research focuses on bright coloration in birds, especially red. Along with birding, he enjoys kayak fishing along the Alabama cost!

📍Stay tuned for our next #MeetTheTeamMonday!

#MuseumMonday #aumnh #cosam #auburnuniversity

🍁Have you been to the museum yet?Join us on our last First Wednesday Tour of the year on 12/3 to get a peak at the behind-the-scenes of each collection!

🦕Space is limited and registration is required

🔗https://aub.ie/Tours

#aumnh #auburnuniversity #museumtour #behindthescenes #collections