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Zoological Museum

Zoological Museum


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Orar

  • Monday | closed
  • Tuesday–Friday | 10:00 AM–04:00 PM
  • Saturday–Sunday | 10:00 AM–02:00 PM

Tarife

  • Adults | 20.00 lei
  • Schoolchildren, students, pensioners | 10.00 lei
  • Family ticket (2 adults + 1 child; free admission for all the other children) | 45.00 lei
  • BBU students and employees (based on their student ID card and work ID card, respectively), children under 3 years of age, and persons with disabilities | free entry


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Adresa

  • Clinicilor Street, no. 5–7, 400007, Cluj-Napoca

Personal

  • Dr. Cristian Sitar, museographer
  • Dr. Gergely Osváth, museographer

Email

  • zoologic.muzee@ubbcluj.ro

Telefon

  • +40 (0)264 598 700


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Toate evenimentele

Overview

Established in 1859 as a section of the Transylvanian Museum, the Zoological Museum of Babeș-Bolyai University is one of the most impressive museums of its kind in Romania, housing some of the oldest collections in South-Eastern Europe.

On an area of 700 m², the public can see numerous animal species of the Romanian fauna, as well as many species native to different parts of the world. In the museum, there are also thematic dioramas that capture the behavioral aspects and the natural environment of the species, as well as curiosities related to them.

The Zoological Museum also serves as a study material base for middle and high school students. Its configuration provides the setting for thematic biology lessons, and it serves as a place of study for students of the biology faculties. Due to its complexity, the museum is visited annually by groups of students, schoolchildren, and researchers, who have the opportunity to complete their knowledge of the animal world.

Permanent exhibition

In the permanent exhibition, the biological material is displayed in the order of structural complexity, from metazoans with the simplest body organization (sponges or water sponges) to mammals. The museum reflects the evolution from simple to complex in the animal kingdom.

The permanent exhibition takes up three rooms. The first houses representatives of the main invertebrate groups (protozoa, sponges, coelenterates, worms, mollusks, crustaceans, insects, and echinoderms). In this room, visitors will also meet procordates (the precursors of vertebrates) and a part of the vertebrates (fish, amphibians, and reptiles). Most of the exhibits in this room are preserved in liquid (formalin or ethanol). Some, however, are dry preparations, such as insects.

In addition to the taxonomically arranged exhibits, the museum also features thematic insect exhibits that showcase the behavior, natural habitats, and unique characteristics of diverse insect species. Among the curiosities are the size variations of tropical butterflies depending on the season, aspects of homochromy copying and mimicry in butterflies and larvae, and the stages of silk thread development in the silk butterfly (Bombix mori).

Another room is dedicated to the collection of birds and mammals. Birds are the best represented vertebrates in the museum. Some of them are displayed in a didactic, taxonomic way, grouped by family. In addition to the didactic showcases, dioramas and micro-dioramas are also on display in the hall, showcasing various species of birds in their natural living environment. Some dioramas capture behavioral aspects of the species’ lives or curiosities, such as albinism. Also, in this room, you can see nests and eggs from different bird species. Mammals are exhibited in the museum as naturalized exhibits (by stuffing). As with birds, they are arranged either individually, in taxonomic order, or grouped in thematic dioramas.

The link between the two rooms is through the diorama hall. The room features six large dioramas and a micro-diorama at its center. According to the aspects they present, the large dioramas are the Danube Delta, Tern Colony, Diurnal Birds of Prey I, Diurnal Birds of Prey II, Faunal Aspect of the Lowlands,and Winter Survival. The central micro-diorama features a hummingbird collection of 45 specimens.

Activities

Although the primary purpose of Babeș-Bolyai University Zoological Museum is didactic, the institution is open to the general public of all ages. For groups, thematic and age-group-related guided tours are organized free of charge in several languages (Romanian, Hungarian, English).

The Zoological Museum serves as a teaching resource for schoolchildren and students.Thematic lessons in biology can be held here, and the exhibits in the museum can be objects of study for students of the relevant faculties.

Every year, the large number and diversity of exhibits attract groups of visitors and researchers who have the opportunity to learn more about the animal world.

Museum collections

Some of the museum’s exhibits