Animals with Backbones (Vertebrates)

Explore the museum's bird collection. Learn how to help birds through citizen science.

There are 15 species of bats in BC. Which ones live near you? Find out how important bats are to people and the world we share with them.

Orcas are embedded in human culture, from the screen to aquariums, mass media has shown the world the beauty of this species and how human behavior controls their fate. There is so much more for us to learn about orca culture and what they need to survive.

Almost 50 years ago a geologist found dinosaur fossils in northern BC. Today those fossils are in the Royal BC Museum collection. Curator of palaeontology Dr. Victoria Arbour studies those fossils. Find out about her exciting discoveries!

Have you met the infamous Woolly mammoth at the Royal BC Museum? He greets visitors inside the entrance to the Natural History gallery. Woolly, as he is affectionately called by visitors and museum staff, is a replica of the largest animal to ever walk on this continent. Not everyone likes him. He has been known to frighten small children.…

The Royal BC Museum fish collection is varied and wonderful. Explore the astounding diversity of British Columbia fishes through the collection and scientific illustration.

We're all in this together. An ecosystem is a natural community. When species disappear it can throw an entire system off balance, with far-reaching consequences for ecosytems, for the planet, and for us. What can we do about it?

Listening for birds is a skill that takes patience and perseverance. Grace Bell used her skill and love of birds to record British Columbia bird calls and songs.

The mammal collection is as diverse as the mammals of BC. Mammal specimens at the museum are preserved, stored and made available for research.