The DITSONG: National Museum of Natural History formerly known as the Transvaal Museum was founded as the Staatsmuseum of the ZAR on 1 December 1892. It is a custodian of South Africa's natural heritage. The Museum's collections and exhibits include hominid fossils from the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site and associated fauna, including Mrs Ples [the nickname attributed to a fossil skull believed to represent a distant relative of all humankind]; fossils, skeletons, skins and mounted specimens of amphibians, fish, invertebrates, reptiles and mammals. The Museum has the largest collection of southern African beetles in the world. It boasts the largest representation of South Africa's birds and herpetology in the world and the largest collection of moths and butterflies in Africa.