Nature Experiences for All Ages

The Ark Nature Centre is a natural science museum founded in 2000, located in the center of Pori. Ark’s permanent exhibition “From Forests to the Sea” showcases the natural sites of the Satakunta region, including its animals and plants. The changing exhibitions explore nature and environmental themes from various perspectives. Ark’s butterfly room displays Finnish and tropical butterflies, and the Jotuni stone yard features examples of Satakunta’s bedrock. The butterfly room collections can be viewed upon request. Butterfly specimens are sensitive to light, so the room is kept dark most of the time.

Nature House Ark guides visitors of all ages into the wonders of nature. Guided tours for daycare, school, and adult groups are an important way to implement environmental education and increase environmental awareness. In addition to exhibitions and related tours, The Ark Nature Centre organizes lectures, workshops, and other events. Besides ticket sales and a small museum shop, Ark also has a meeting and lecture room called ”Lumme” (in English water lily), which is also used for birthday parties.

In addition to public spaces, The Ark Nature Centre preserves natural science collections. Natural science specimens are stored online in the Kotka collection management system, which is a management system for natural science specimen collections. Some of the collections from The Ark Nature Centre can be explored online on the Finnish Biodiversity Information Facility’s laji.fi website.