New Special Exhibition Brings the Nebraska Badlands to Bradenton’s Bishop Museum

January 22, 2021 – Bradenton

Since 2011, The Bishop Museum of Science and Nature has partnered with the Toomey Foundation for the Natural Sciences to lead more than 50 Manatee County teachers on paleontology expeditions to the Nebraska Badlands, allowing them to gain hands-on experience they can bring back to their classrooms.

Starting Jan. 28, The Bishop will share these expeditions with guests through its newest special exhibition, Badlands to Bradenton: Lessons from the Field, which showcases some of the most fascinating fossil finds and tells the story of these summer paleontology digs and how they can support learning. 

“Thanks to the Museum’s partnership with the Toomey Foundation, we’re able to lead expeditions to the White River Formation in Nebraska where we can offer teachers the experience of being on a real dig — finding and excavating fossils — so they can share their knowledge with their students,” said Matthew D. Woodside, The Bishop’s Chief Curator and Director of Exhibitions. “This new special exhibition brings the wonder of those discoveries home to Bradenton.”

Why Nebraska? Millions of years ago, Nebraska looked like today’s Everglades: Shallow rivers and mucky floodplains supported a variety of mammals. But as Nebraska dried up, many of the mammals became extinct and their remains captured in the rock, creating the fossil-rich Badlands we know today. 

“Florida was once home to species similar to those that roamed in the Badlands, but Florida’s geology has developed differently over the past 30 million years, including a relatively recent period where much of the land mass that holds the fossil record was covered with water,” said Tish Sacks, The Bishop’s Director of Education. “Fortunately, the Badlands digs offer an opportunity for teachers to explore this period of natural history. We bring the teachers out of their comfort zone and inspire them to learn new skills in an environment they’ve never encountered before. That challenge to explore something new sparks discussion, energy and ideas for the classroom.”  

For more information, visit https://bishopscience.org/