Geneva museum launches 30-million-franc fight against beetle

The Natural History Museum of Geneva is preparing a costly, years-long campaign to protect thousands of preserved animals from an infestation of bread beetles, SRF reports.

The small insects, which feed on feathers, hair and other organic material, were first reported at the museum in September 2025. Warm, dark corridors provide ideal conditions for them, said chief curator Alice Cibois.

Almost 1,000 preserved animals will be moved to a secure location outside the museum. From February, specialists plan to seal them inside a large plastic enclosure and remove all the oxygen for five weeks, a process known as anoxia, to kill the beetles without damaging the specimens.

The operation will cost 30 million Swiss francs and involve the museum’s entire staff. The collection of Swiss fauna is heavily affected and must be carefully cleared out. Storage areas and two floors of the museum are less affected. Some display cases have not been opened since the 1960s.

The museum is due to reopen partially in 2028 and fully in 2036. It also plans to use chemical treatments to make display-case materials inedible to insects, Cibois said.