South Florida Museum (A Photo Diary)

The South Florida Museum is situated in the heart of Bradenton, Florida. It contains a rather large collection of natural and cultural history displays and artifacts. The facility also includes an aquarium and a planetarium. (Unfortunately, the latter was closed the day I visited.)

The museum's entrance...

Apparently mastodons used to live in Florida thousands of years ago. This huge skeleton of one greets visitors as they enter the museum's foyer.

The jaw bones of a prehistoric shark that used to swim the waters near Florida. (That is me standing there to give it some perspective. I'm an average size man at 5' 11".)

This picture is a close-up shot of prehistoric shark teeth.

A mural depicting Native American life in Florida before the arrival of the Europeans.

A statue of Spanish conquistador, Hernando de Soto, stands in the museum's central interior plaza.

Manatees are the main attraction for the museum's aquarium.