Natural Selection

What a magical, and wondrous place! This shop is a beautiful testament to Marcy and Emily and the love they share for this place and all that dwells within. It is blatantly clear after a moment of speaking with either of the terrific women that this is a labor of love. Their joy and happiness is infectious. If the Natural world and its wonders are for you then this place is also for you. Do yourself a favor and visit.

Holy smokes! Wow! What a find! Not since I got an Etch-​a-​Sketch, View Master and Slinky all on the same Christmas morning have I been so thrilled, amazed, and fabbergasted as when I visited Natural Selection. It was over a year ago that I was given a hint that this store would be opening in Midtown. As a proud Midtown resident I was eagerly awaiting it but then it fell off my radar until I saw something about it on line. The store is a wonderland of «What the hell is that» and «Ooh so coo!» Definitely the place when you need a place that has that thing you wont find at any other place. Most of you know I’m an arborist and this place gave me my plant fix. Very impressive assortment of plants. The largest collection of succulents in the area– no doubt. Natural Selections is also a licensed nursery! They have the largest variety of air plants that I have ever seen. As a horticulture consultant and former plant doctor at 2 local nurseries I was amazed at the large variety of air plants and succulents. Did I mention they have bonsai?! Trust me that this is THE MOST unique and interesting store in Reno. It is the epitome of Midtown hip cool and über interesting. There is a classroom/​design area in the back and according to the owner they will be rolling out fun design seminars and all sorts of interesting community goings-​ons! I took some photos but nothing can prepare you for what must be you own unique and sure-​to-​amaze experience of visiting Natural Selection for yourself. Dozens of great Christmas gifts for those who deserve something supremely special!

This is a wonderful and unique store to have in Reno. For anybody who has an interest in Victorian/​Steampunk/​scientific/​macabre and beautiful décor — you have to come to Natural Selection!
This store fulfills all my dreams of having my own Victorian Parlor, full of weird and beautiful things. You will find strange and beautiful specimens of taxidermy, succulents, glass, books, geological specimens and a few unexpected surprises. I’ll be coming back again, and again.
The owners are wonderful, open and friendly and absolutely there to help you with anything or answer questions. This is a must-​see in Reno!

The ladies who run this shop are the nicest people on the planet. They have always been more than happy to answer questions and explain the different things in the store. If you’re into natural science, they are a wide variety of specimens and other items. The plant collections are also quiet impressive and unique.

The owners here are so nice, and filled with passion regarding why they are doing what they are doing. Their story is unique and they have a story to share about everything in their store. Sounds like they are working on a website for 2016 and they are open to sharing what they do with others in the area of education. Their store is gorgeous and hands on within reason. Last but not least, their prices are very fair with lots of little do dads for cheap. I bought 6 items for $ 22. I’ve been to a lot of taxidermy stores but this ones the coolest. For $ 22, I got a peacock feather, porcupine quill, a back bone piece, regurgitated owl pellet, desert rose, and one more thing I’m forgetting now. I excited to potentially use these in a classroom or just keep as conversation pieces in my home. Support this small local business!!!

Natural Selections is one of my favorite places in Reno. This quaint shop has a ton of odd, yet beautiful things. The shop has a great old timey feel. The people who run the shop are wonderful, welcoming, and full of knowledge. They are eager and willing to help you with any questions. I recommend getting one of their moss balls. If you’re lucky they might have some cherry shrimp to accompany your new moss friend. From time to time I hear that they have bug pinning classes. Go to natural selections get something beautiful and weird!

What can I say, this is the most unique store I’ve ever stepped foot into. Definitely not for the faint of heart, this store is packed full of cool and creepy taxidermy specimens and fun little plants.
The owner is sweet, and her mother is even sweeter! They are great local gals who are genuinely interested in what they sell! From my understanding, all taxidermy is done by the owner herself, or perhaps just most of it.
I had the opportunity to pick up some ‘air plants’ from her shop about 4 months ago and they are still kicking and very much alive all thanks to her advice and knowledge. Would love to go back sometime soon to pick up some plants and maybe some more of her cool little odds and ends scattered around the store. Absolutely worth a visit if you’re cruising around mid-​town.

5 stars, 5 stars, 5 stars… Really.
Natural Selection in the newly gentrified Midtown area of Reno, is exactly what the person looking for somewhere fun, different and intriguing may be in the mood for. Looking for natural elements to add to your home décor? How about a fancy terrarium? How about a geode or nautilus shell with an air plant? How about a small apothecary jar with water and shells and an adorable floating moss ball? In the market for a raccoon penis bone or a piece of pyrite… Record skip, yes, you heard me right, pyrite. Oh, you meant the raccoon penis bone. Oh yeah, they have those, too.
The store is so well thought out in design and concept, that your eye bounces around from item to item. From boar head to chest of drawers with airplants to a bowl full of crystals to a tiny taxidermy squirrel dressed as Robin Hood.
You can buy one of the beautiful terrariums there, or make your own in the back room with items selected in the store, all materials needed at your eager little fingertips.
There are loads of taxidermy specimens available for purchase should your man cave or mountain retreat need a stuffed feral goat head or antelope head, then, cha-​ching! You’ve found your lucky spot!
My daughters and I were loving looking at all the cool oddities and natural treasures, we bought a wall terrarium with amethyst sand and shells and airplants. A druzy necklace and a ram horn used as a vase for an airplant. A couple miny geodes and a piece of pyrite. Oh, and a raccoon penis bone, because, that’s normal. And needed.
I highly, highly, highly, highly, highly recommend Natural Selection. Go. You’ll fall in love for the first, and last time.

This place bumps Midtown up into a whole new category, if you ask me. One more hipster eating/​drinking place is the last thing we need. More shops like Natural Selection will provide another draw to Midtown for unique shopping.
I went to Natural Selection after a friend gave me a mink skull that was purchased there. She described a wonderful and unique store so I had to see it for myself.
The purveyors are authentic, warm and great fun to talk to. Like another reviewer, I have been thinking about those algae balls since I visited a few weeks ago. Must find a great, upcycled glass something for mine to live in, then I will be back!
I enjoyed talking with the owner’s mother, and I am so sorry to have forgotten her name because she made my visit a real experience. We had a great conversation about nature, life, death and animals. How wonderful to connect with another human and talk about important issues. She also gave me a history on some of the taxidermy that is in the store and their stories are quite interesting.
Totally worth the trip, give it a try! Not to mention, there are myriad eateries and bars nearby in which to refresh yourself after your visit to Natural Selection. I wish Natural selection much success.

It was love at first sight for me and Natural Selection. The ambiance, décor, ever-​changing products, and staff are incredible. I am particularly fond of their wide selection of succulents and fun pots and containers for them. Not to mention every time I come in there’s something new to check out. Reno is very lucky to have this little treasure!

Amazing & knowledgeable staff. The prices are very reasonable and the inventory is interesting and mysterious. A perfect fit for midtown

As humans, our interest in the odd and obscure is undeniable. We’ve been marveling and gawking at «Freak Shows» for years, and today that practice still continues in various forms around the world. Things outside the norm immediately draw our attention and spark our curiosity, and as I’ve learned, just beneath the surface of most great cities, lies a subculture that honors, respects, reveres everything out of the ordinary.
The TV show «Oddities» brought this community of collectors to light in my eyes, and ever since I’ve been fascinated with these curiosities and the people who collect them. I think my love for these stems from their provenance, places in history, the stories they have to tell, and the fact that each piece is so unique. They’re all things that make you scratch you do a double take, scratch your head and say «huh» or make you feel like you’re staring at the proverbial train wreck from which you can’t seem to look away. They’re simply fascinating, and Natural Selection is store full of just these things!
One glance around the store and you can tell that Emily, the owner, is a big fan of taxidermy. You’ll find mounts of all types from mammals to magnificent butterflies and beetles, as well as skeletons and even dioramas. I happen to like this stuff a lot, and the collection on display at Natural Selection has some very interesting pieces, many of which have some apparent age to them. These older pieces all have their own stories to tell, and Emily is happy to share them all with you. I was particularly interested in the Eurasian Woodpeckers, a specimen that pre-​dates the endangered species act, which she acquired from a European museum collection! Next on my list of questions is to ask about the big burmese python that guards the entry way, and maybe pick up a collection of the funny squirrels around the shop! Shhh… don’t tell Ashley.
One thing Ash and I did fall in love with collectively was a ball of living algae. Yes. A ball of green fuzzy plant matter from Japan called a Marimo. I don’t know what fascinated us so much, but this floating green ball in a jar has been on our minds ever since we laid eyes on it. These things naturally occur in rivers in Japan, and are now being cultivated in captivity. They’re alive, and they grow 5 mm a year. I’m pretty sure there will be a marimo on my desk in the next week or so. And maybe a carnivorous plant (venus fly trap or pitcher plant) and succulent terrarium too!
Natural Selection has something for everyone. You probably don’t know what that something is yet, and you may not even know it exists, but once you visit, you’ll know it when you see it. Who knows, it may literally jump off the shelf at you!

This is maybe the best store to look around and find things you didn’t know that you really wanted or needed… but want just the same. This is one of my 3 year olds favorite stores because she is always incouraged to touch and feel everything in the store. The store staff have always been incredibly friendly and helpful.

A little midtown gem. I went in today for the first time and thought it was great. As the previous reviewer mentioned, the shop is filled with succulents, bonsai, bones, taxidermy, jars, pots, and books in the spirit of Wunderkammer, or cabinets of curiosities. The inventory is small, but I’m sure as they start getting regular customers they will start being able to build and bring in new and interesting things. If you want to feel like a kid in an apothecary, this is the place for you. The woman who helped us was super polite and friendly. A perfect place to find that quirky gift for someone who has everything, or something fun for your own office desk or coffee table.

This is such a neat little shop! They have air plants, succulents and carnivorous plants (plus pretty containers for all of them) and plenty of more-​specialized oddities (taxidermy snakes, various pelts, and raccoon penis bones… yep you read that correctly!) The ladies at the counter were SUPER friendly and inviting (they were piecing together the skeleton of a tiny deer and took the time to tell us about it and show us similar interesting things.) Highly recommended!