Wonders of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium

Wonders of Wildlife National Museum & Aquarium in Springfield, Missouri, offers immersive wildlife galleries and a 1.5 million-gallon aquarium showcasing 35,000 live animals.

Planning your visit

Wonders of Wildlife was built by Johnny Morris, the founder of Bass Pro Shops, next to that company's flagship store in Springfield, and it is enormous: a 1.5-million-gallon aquarium holding around 35,000 animals, and wildlife galleries running a mile and a half through immersive habitat dioramas.

The framing is explicitly conservationist through the lens of hunting and angling — the argument that sportsmen funded American wildlife recovery through licence fees and excise taxes, which is historically accurate and not how most natural history museums tell it. Visitors who reject that premise should know it in advance.

The habitat recreations are of a high standard, and the aquarium tunnels, shark tank and touch pools work well for children.

Springfield is in the Ozarks. Allow half a day.

The main booking is an admission ticket. Current availability is listed below.