EXPLORING AND DOCUMENTING DIVERSITY IN NATURE

Estonian Museum of Natural History

Consortium name  
Estonian Consortium: Estonian Academy of Sciences
Institution (Original name) 
Eesti Loodusmuuseum
MAIN ADDRESS
Street 
Lai, 29A
Postal code 
10133
City 
Tallinn
POSTAL ADDRESS
Country 
Estonia
Phone 

(+372) 641 1739

Fax 
(+372) 641 1738
E-mail 
muuseum@loodusmuuseum.ee
Website 
Estonian Museum of Natural History
TYPE OF INSTITUTION
Type of institution 
Museum
LEGAL STATUS
Legal reference 
State
Are you part of a larger entity / legal body? 
No
CETAF MEMBERSHIP
Category 
Full member
CETAF Official representative
Name, position, phone, e-mail, research field 

Urmas Kõljalg, PhD, +372 737 6235; Urmas.Koljalg@ut.ee.

Member of the Executive Committee? 
No
CETAF DEPUTY
Name, position, phone, e-mail, research field 

Olle Hints, Phd, +372 513 0157; Olle.Hints@ttu.ee. Tiiu Kull, PhD, +372 731 1883; Tiiu.Kull@emu.ee

Member of the Executive Committee? 
No
Director / legal representative of the institution (title, name, phone, e-mail, research field) 

Mrs Heidi Vilu, +372 641 1739, Heidi.Vilu@loodusmuuseum.ee

Organigram 

The administrative structure of the Museum is led by the Director. There are four departments in the Museum: Department of Botany, Department of Zoology, Department of Geology and Department of Nature Education, who are responsible for their field and are led by the Head of the Department.

Governing and executive bodies 

Estonian Museum of Natural History belongs in the administrative area of the Ministry of the Environment and is under surveillance by Minister of the Environment.

PERSONNEL
Scientific staff 
Permanent (P)Non – Permanent (NP)
a) TOTAL scientific staff00
b) Scientific staff linked to Collections90
c) Post-docs / PhD students00
d) Others (Associates, etc.)00
TOTAL (a+b+c+d)90
Other staff (administration etc.) 
Permanent (P)Non – Permanent (NP)
e) Exhibitions 72
f) Collection Managers / technicians124
g) Others 61
TOTAL (e+f+g) 1427
Total permanent staff 
23
Total non-permanent staff 
27
Grand total (permanent + non-permanent Staff) 
50
Male (%) 
32
Female (%) 
68
Externalized services, permanent positions 
0
Externalized services, non-permanent positions 
0
Total (permanent and non-permanent staff + externalized personnel)  
50
R&D facilities
How many laboratories are in use in your institution? 
1
List of laboratories 

Specimens can be investigated using stereo microscopes.

Exhibitions
Number of permanent exhibitions 
1
List of permanent exhibitions  
Name 
Permanent Exhibition
Exhibition URL 
Permanent Exhibition
Number of recent exhibitions 
7
Recent Temporary Exhibitions (< 2 years) 
Name 
Wild boar
Exhibition URL 
Wild boar
Name 
Night Flyers
Exhibition URL 
Night Flyers
Name 
Tempos and Rhythms
Exhibition URL 
Tempos and Rhythms
Name 
On the Gulf of Finland
Exhibition URL 
On the Gulf of Finland
Name 
Live Spiders
Exhibition URL 
Live Spiders
Name 
A Stony World
Exhibition URL 
A Stony World
Name 
Inhabitants of Primeval Seas
Exhibition URL 
Inhabitants of Primeval Seas
Number of current exhibitions 
2
Current Temporary Exhibitions 
Name 
The Bold and the Beautiful. Starred by: lichen and moss
Exhibition URL 
The Bold and the Beautiful
Name 
458 million years of Estonian oil shale. 100 years of mining
Exhibition URL 
458 million years of Estonian oil shale
RESEARCH FIELDS
RESEARCH FIELD 
Research Field 
Monitoring of protected vascular plants and bryophytes
Link to your Institution’s Research page 
Research page
Research Field 
Atlas of the Estonian vascular plants fieldwork
Research Field 
Early to Mid-Palaeozoic fauna
Research Field 
Monitoring of vagrant species (Coleoptera, Lepidoptera) of Estonia
Scientific publications
Number of peer-reviewed publications per year 
3
Annual journals/series 

Exhibition catalogues: http://www.loodusmuuseum.ee/loodusharidus/oppematerjalid/

EARTH SCIENCES (Geology, Mineralogy, Palaeontology,…) 
TypologyPrimary typesIndividual specimens/objects% registered cards% recorded cards in database
1.1Palaeontology10300009695
1.2Mineralogy038009090
1.3Geology037009090
LIFE SCIENCES (Zoology, Biology, Botany, Mycology,…) 
TypologyPrimary typesIndividual specimens/objects% registered cards % recorded cards in database
2.1Botany101240008452
2.2Mycology023009473
2.3Zoology321370009460
Total specimens (all collections) 
300,800
Does your institution have an Index Seminum? 

No

Heritage sciences (art, manuscripts, maps, photographs...) 

Books about museum´s field of studies (mostly contemporary).

Other information regarding heritage collections 

Photographs related to natural History and Natural Sciences – 28 000 individual objects. Heritage Science – 1030 individual objects.

Genetic Repositories
Does your institution have a DNA bank? 
No
Does your institution have a seed bank? 
No
COLLECTION’S RELATED INFORMATION
Number of outgoing loans (parcels / specimens) per year 
74 (2014)
Number of accessions (specimens) per year 
18993 (2014)
Number of scientific visitors per year 
28
MAIN AREAS OF TAXONOMIC EXPERTISE 
Vascular plants of temperate zone
Bryophytes
Lichens
Coleoptera
Lepidoptera
Zooplankton
Mammals, Birds, Molluscs of temperate zone
Fish fauna of a brackish water
Early to Mid Paleozoic fauna
COMMUNICATION MATERIAL
Logo 
Contact person at your institution for communications / press / external relations (name, position, phone, e-mail) 

Ethel Tamm, +372 6411624; Ethel.Tamm@loodusmuuseum.ee

Visitors
Last year:  
55 000
Trends (past and future) 

The number of visitors is increasing vastly in recent years

Website visitors
Last year  
104 000
Institution news
Webpage 
Institution Website
Facebook 
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Career opportunities
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Training
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Research updates
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Workshops / Events
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Online media galleries
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If your institution is involved with non-university-based teaching or education programmes, please describe them & the partners 

There are vast number of museum programmes for schools and nursery schools, mostly curriculum-based. http://www.loodusmuuseum.ee/en/nature-education

If your institution is involved with universities in teaching or education programmes, please name and describe them 

Museum´s specialists are involved in supervising graduate students.

If your institution is involved in online courses, please describe them and the partners 

No

If your institution is involved in training projects, please describe them and the partners 

There are some short termed work additional training carried out together with Estonian Environmental Board for civil servants.

Other relevant information on education and / or training carried out 

The museum offers specially designed curriculum-based nature education classes, which makes it easy to conduct interesting school lessons in the museum, guided tours for groups and individuals. Lectures can be ordered from the biologists and geologists of the museum on a wide variety of topics.

Contact person at your institution for education / teaching / training (name, position, phone, e-mail) 

Tiiu Liimets; +372 6411 740; Tiiu.Liimets@loodusmuuseum.ee

Last update 
04.12.18