Playing With Fire: Extinction Scene 1

Playing With Fire: Extinction and Survival at La Brea Tar Pits

In California, 13,000 years ago, huge Ice Age mammals that had roamed the landscape for many millennia, suddenly ceased to exist. The cause? Humans, catastrophic fires, and an ecosystem made vulnerable by climate change.
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Genus Pseudopotamilla polychaete by Leslie Harris
Research and Collections

An Ocean of Worms

Discover an underwater world of incredible marine worms in the ancient rocks off L.A.’s coast
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Children looking at flowers with magnifiers
Naturalist Nature in L.A.

Nature Gardens Turn 10

A look back—and forward–at all the nature thriving in NHM’s Nature Gardens.
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Indian common crow butterfly observation from iNaturalist
Research and Collections

The Beginnings of Butterflies

A sweeping new study by over 80 scientists including NHM researcher Vijay Barve identifies that butterflies originated in North or Central America 100 million years ago.
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Girls-in-STEM Fossil Day
Naturalist

 Wonder Girls

A contingent of 8 to 18-year-olds spent three inspirational days at NHM learning from experts about fossils, mammals, and oceans, and discovering the many stepping stones to careers in science, technology, engineering and math.
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Zeolite -- pink
Naturalist

Minerals with Lead-busting Superpowers

Our scientists are harnessing the properties of a mineral to encapsulate dangerous lead in soil in South L.A. backyards, demonstrating how NHM discoveries coupled with community partners can power environmental change.
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Anglerfish for header

Depth Perceptions

NHM’s marine collections illuminate the shape of life in deep water.
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SEM scan of a brittle star
Research and Collections

Think Small With SEM

Seeing the big picture with tiny specimens and one powerful scanning electron microscope
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Tar Pits MGM Parody

Saber-toothed Cat 101

La Brea Tar Pits presents everything you need to know about saber-toothed cats.
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donkey by inaturalist user garmonb0zia

Burro-Ing Into the Past

How introduced donkeys and the indigenous pumas that love (to hunt) them are helping to resurrect extinct food webs in Death Valley
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