A Decade of Discovery

The Museum’s collection began with the natural history collections at the Raffles Library and Museum. In the 1970s, it moved to the National University of Singapore and became the Zoological Reference Collection. This has grown into today's Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum.

The Museum holds over a million zoological specimens, with our numbers still growing. Over the past decade, the collection has expanded through field expeditions, collaborations with researchers, and our donors' support.

This map shows where the Museum's specimens have originated from, as well as the many expeditions and collaborations we have embarked on. These efforts aid in advancing research and the acquisition of scientifically important materials for the Museum.

Some of the Museum's major expeditions include the South Java Deep Sea Biodiversity Expedition (SJADES) 2018, the Christmas Island Expeditions 2010–2017 and Timor-Leste Expedition 2021. These field efforts have led to many extraordinary new discoveries and species records.

As a trusted custodian of Southeast Asia's natural heritage, the Museum is regularly entrusted with specimens from our donors and partners for safe keeping. They also serve as important reference material for species identification and other biodiversity work.

The Museum's research focuses on deepening our understanding of Southeast Asian fauna. Our work supports biodiversity baseline surveys as well as conservation efforts. We also conduct programmes and outreach to make biodiversity more accessible to students and the public.

The Museum also provides expert guidance and consultation on biodiversity and animal-related issues. During the COVID-19 pandemic (in 2010–2021), our entomologists assisted in assessing insect-related health concerns and provided guidance on mitigation strategies.

We aim to make science more accessible to the public through initiatives such as the Biodiversity of Singapore (BOS), an online visual digital reference collection of species found in Singapore. The database also features high resolution images of specimens from the Museum.

Find out more here!

The Outreach and Education unit (OEU) conducts programmes for all ages and backgrounds. These include flagship curriculum-aligned programmes for schools and seasonal biodiversity programmes, expanding the Museum's public outreach further.

Singapore in Global Natural History Museums Information Facility (SIGNIFY) is our ongoing project digitising Singapore specimens housed in museum institutions worldwide. The project tracks down historically and scientifically important specimens collected from Singapore since the 19th century.

Find out more here!

The Museum embraces an interdisciplinary approach in our research by integrating ‘specimen to science’ methodologies with a 'specimen to stories' perspective. We look into the future and position ourselves as a space where science, heritage and natural history can come together!

The Museum's anniversary publication, Archipelago of Islands, exemplifies this interdisciplinary approach. Focusing on Singapore's offshore islands, the book tells stories of the past interactions between nature and people, through specimen and non-specimen records.

Discover more of our books here.

Over the past decade, the Museum has faced many challenges. Its mission has endured through the support of its donors, partners and dedicated staff. We look ahead to preserving the past and to better understand our natural environment, today and into the future.

Thank you for celebrating ten years with us! Our exhibition A Decade of Discovery may have come to an end, but our Museum continues to open our doors to all visitors, families and nature lovers to discover the wonders of natural history, both virtually and in person.