Octopus & Butterfly – Fascinating Invertebrates

Invertebrates do not have a bony skeleton. Their striking appearance is often shaped by an exoskeleton as is the case with insects, or a shell system as found in mussels and snails. However they can also be soft and mobile, like worms. The exhibition offers an overview of the enormous diversity of invertebrates.

Sponges, jellyfish, snails, mussels and crabs are as much part of our exhibition as millipedes, spiders and insects.

In addition to display cases showing the diversity of invertebrates, some showcases feature thematic contents such as pests and useful creatures found in forests and gardens.

The impressive model of a giant squid, as well as the 1:100 scale model of a spider, enhance the exhibition together with two showcases which house butterflies and snails from purely aesthetic perspectives.

The living animals are an eye-catching exhibit too. The honey bees in the showcase offer an insight into the inside of the hive. And in a complex system of pots and tubes, you can watch leafcutter ants as they go about their busy life. Alongside colony-forming insects such as bees and ants, there are also snails, cockroaches, beetles and stick insects.

In 1999, we gently renovated the exhibition and added new texts. The furniture from the 1930s was in some cases retained, but the formerly overwhelming quantity of objects was dramatically reduced.