The Web We Weave. The Magazine of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

Transcription

1 Membership Office 900 Exposition Boulevard Los Angeles, CA Telephone Non Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Los Angeles, CA Permit no The Magazine of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County October / November 2011 In this Issue: Inside the Spider Pavilion Pacific Standard Time at NHM The Web We Weave

2 NEW SPIDER PAVILION September 25 November 6 THE TRUTH ABOUT SPIDERS Spend some quality time with these marvelous, misunderstood creatures. Get a spider s eyes view of life inside a funnel web, new this season! Online tickets and a full list of Haunted Museum Week events: nhm.org/spiders Support provided by NOW DINOSAUR HALL With the summer crowds gone, it s the perfect time to come back to the Dinosaur Hall. Open daily, no timed entry required. NEXT ARTISTIC EVOLUTION Artistic Evolution: Southern California Artists at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Exhibition on view October 2 to January 15, Rotunda Mezzanine. NHM.ORG Daily Discovery Dear Friends, As thrilled as I am with the new Dinosaur Hall, the upcoming L.A. exhibit, and our emerging outdoor nature habitats, and as proud as I feel of this institution s on- going transformation into a 21st-century, indoor-outdoor natural history museum, there is so much to be said of the everyday work we do in the midst of this journey. We reach our visitors in every hall, with gems, dioramas, history, an outdoor pavilion that currently features web-spinning spiders, and a Visible Vault filled with Latin American treasures. We offer tours, performances, family events, and discussions. We even provide wonder and discovery off-site. As you can read inside, our mobile education outreach program movable classrooms built inside a trio of colorful trucks has served 815 different elementary and middle schools since Through the years, NHM educators have returned to many of those schools again and again, building relationships between the school community and the Museum. The program has inspired many of those students to become lifelong learners. As they grow up, they return to NHM as adults with their own kids, and strong memories of the wonderful trucks that once visited their schools. Inspiration takes many forms. Our gorgeous new halls can leave visitors awestruck. When our outdoor habitats open over the next two years, the ability to move between vibrant nature outside, and deep learning inside, will deepen the NHM experience and I think too, change the ways that other natural history museums think about connecting with the living planet. But there is also magic in quiet, one-on-one interactions between educators and visitors from a great gee whiz museum moment, to the launch of a career in the sciences. It is all possible here. I hope you will join us. Jane G. Pisano President and Director 2 Briefs 4 Inside the Spider Pavilion 6 Pacific 8 Happy 10 Kids Standard Time at NHM Birthday, Earthmobile! NHM Next Campaign Spotlight: Karen Bristing Events and Calendar The Naturalist magazine is a publication of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and is issued six times a year. As a member benefit, each issue provides a look at Museum exhibits, collections, adventures, research, and events. Through them, we inspire wonder, discovery, and responsibility for our natural and cultural worlds. Cover photo by Lisa Eisner 1

3 NHM in the News POLLY IN THE PRESS NHM at the Rose Parade The Natural History Museum is Natural History Family of Museums A paper published on August 12, 2011 in Science magazine excited to announce it has been revealed the very unique nature of one of the fossils in invited by LA INC. to represent our Dinosaur Hall: It is an embryonic marine reptile the City of Los Angeles on its float contained within the fossil of its mother. The 78-millionyear-old, 15.4-foot-long adult specimen is a Polycotylus latippinus (we call her Polly here at the NHM). For a long time, scientists have had their suspicions that these plesiosaurs did not lay eggs like other reptiles but lacked the evidence to support otherwise. This fossil documents live birth in plesiosaurs for the first time, This Worm Will Hook You for the upcoming Tournament of Roses Parade on January 2, The theme of this year s parade is Just imagine and although we can t reveal the details of the float just yet (hint: think dinosaurs!), its design and development will Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits Little Fossils When you think of fossils from the William S. Hart Museum Bow-Wows and Meows William S. Hart had a deep love for and so finally resolves this mystery, says paleontologist be rich with imagination. The float tar pits, the first species that probably animals and that legacy continues Dr. F. Robin O Keefe of Marshall University in A new species of polychaete worm is being constructed by Phoenix come to mind are mammals like when Hart Park hosts the 11th Annual Huntington, West Virginia. Dr. O Keefe analyzed the has been discovered in the upper Decorating Company, the top builder dire wolves and saber-toothed cats. Bow-Wows and Meows Pet Fair on remarkable specimen with Dr. Luis Chiappe, Director of San Francisco Bay. Polychaetes are a in the parade. Deep in a warehouse The mammal fossils, however, are Sunday, October 9, Thousands NHM s Dinosaur Institute. News of this groundbreaking large group of segmented worms that in Pasadena, metal is being sculpted, far outnumbered in diversity by of pet owners, vendors, shelters, discovery has spread rapidly from the Los Angeles Times, live primarily in ocean habitats and, covered in chicken wire and white arthropods. More than 170 species pet rescues, and pets come together National Geographic, Fox, CBS, Scientific American, and as their name suggests, possess many foam, and primed with paint. Soon have been found in the asphalt at this free event to celebrate our Discover magazine. bristles. Although unknown to the it will be ready for the fun part deposits at Rancho La Brea, including animal companions. The festivities average beachgoer, these worms covering it with thousands of flowers scorpions, spiders, water fleas, kick off at 11 am with an exciting help us to better understand marine and natural materials. Stay tuned pill bugs, dragonflies, grasshoppers, lineup of entertainment, food, pet ecosystems and our impact on the to find out how you, as a member, termites, ants, wasps, and the photographers, and low-cost vaccines oceans. This new species is a member can participate in one of our fragrant ubiquitous beetles. Most of these and microchipping for your pet. of the genus Laonome. Only about and fun-filled decorating days! arthropods belong to species living If you re looking to add a new furry 10 species of this genus are known in today although they may no longer friend to your family, adoptions at the world and this is the first Laonome inhabit Los Angeles. Some date as Bow-Wows and Meows are only $30. found along the West Coast. It is a far back as 34,000 years ago. Many There will be over 200 cats and potentially introduced species but of these species were carrion feeders dogs to choose from and all of them Briefs 2 where did it come from? It is also a simultaneous hermaphrodite, meaning it can produce eggs and sperm at the same time. Does this mean it could that were trapped while feeding on carcasses of larger animals mired in the asphalt. While they might be tiny in size next to the mammal fossils, have been spayed or neutered and microchipped and are current on vaccinations. Since it began in 2001, more than 1,000 shelter animals Briefs 3 Plesiosaur illustration by Stephanie Abramowicz, Dinosaur Institute, NHM breed with itself? Dr. J. Kirk Fitzhugh, NHM s Curator of Polychaetes, hopes to soon discover the answers to these questions as well as christen the worm with its new name. For more information on polychaetes, please visit: NHM.ORG/naturalist. Inside The Age of Mammals Go in depth with our researchers and unique specimens in the new The Age of Mammals book now on sale in our Museum Store and online: NHM.ORG/store these arthropods are just as mighty in the information they provide to help us better understand the habitat of the area during the Ice Age. For more information, visit TARPITS.ORG. have found loving homes through the Bow-Wows and Meows Pet Fair. For more information, please visit bowwowsandmeows.org. For more information, visit HARTMUSEUM.ORG. Written by Brianna Socha

4 SAM EASTERSON doesn t have a typical office job. As the Senior Media Producer for the upcoming North Campus habitats and Nature Lab, he cooks up strange and wonderful ways to film L.A. wildlife. He has set up motion-sensor lowers his funnel cam into the black used for other reasons and apply it yellow and black markings, there are In spite of their importance also expect the unexpected! The survey 4 5 camera traps in the emerging North hole-like webs of ground-dwelling to wildlife filmmaking, Easterson says. roughly 15 local and exotic spider and abundance, we do not know that has encountered new species, new The Web We Weave Latest Developments Inside the Spider Pavilion and a New Take on the Spider Survey Campus gardens feral cats, pet pit bulls, hawks, and opossums have been caught on film so far. He has installed bird nesting cams and filmed Allen s Hummingbirds and Black Phoebes feeding bees to their babies. He s even prototyping a peanut cam, a tiny camera lodged inside a real peanut, which Easterson theorizes could be carried, or buried, by local squirrels. But perhaps his most ingenious film project to date is the funnel cam, with which he captures the secret lives of spiders. The device a tiny camera affixed to a long rod is patterned after a borescope, a camera used to peer into engines, or cracks and crevices in construction projects. Easterson gently funnel weavers (of the spider family Agelenidae), which he finds in the hillsides around the Santa Monica Mountains. He has also set up his motion-sensor camera traps directly above some of their webs. Some funnel web spiders shy away from the camera. Others carry on with business in their dark lairs waiting for insects to venture into their webs, and feasting on the insects that make the mistake of doing so. Easterson s favorite footage so far is a funnel weaver making a meal out of a grasshopper. The highlights of his work will play in the Spider Pavilion, open through November 6. A lot of times in my work, I ll take equipment or technology that s This is an example where I take a camera normally used by engineers and mechanics and put it into natural landscapes. It s not Animal Planet or the Discovery Channel. It s all experimental, and I m never sure how things will come out. A lot of times in my work, I ll take equipment or technology that s used for other reasons and apply it to wildlife filmmaking. This is an example where I take a camera normally used by engineers and mechanics and put it into natural landscapes. It s not Animal Planet or the Discovery Channel. It s all experimental, and I m never sure how things will come out. INSIDE THE PAVILION Easterson s footage is just one new component of this year s Spider Pavilion, the walk-through habitat where visitors can check out the spiders webs, participate in daily tours that explain web architecture and engineering, and watch spider feedings in which crickets and roaches are the main course. From the large golden silk spiders of the Nephila genus, to the golden orb weavers, Argiope aurantia, famous for their intricate webs and dramatic species in the Pavilion. The world s largest orb-weaver, Nephila maculata from Malaysia, is returning they are about the size of the palm of an adult s hand, and can engineer webs up to 6 feet across. To prepare for the Pavilion opening, Citizen Science and Live Animals Manager Lila Higgins and Animal Care and Education Coordinator Shawna Joplin traveled to New Orleans in September to meet up with bug chef Zack Lemann (a perennial star of NHM s Bug Fair cook-offs). Lemann is helping the ladies collect Nephila clavipes spiders zealous web spinners from the bayou. Higgins and Joplin procure local specimens too, but Higgins won t say from where. Undisclosed locations throughout the county I don t want anybody getting them except us! SPIDER SURVEY Visitors to the Pavilion can also check out the latest twist on the Museum s ongoing Spider Survey. Since it launched in 2001, the Museum has received over 5,500 entries from over 1,200 participating families. much about Los Angeles spiders. What s worse is, there are no really large collections of urban spiders from the area, because most collectors Find videos and more of Sam s work at NHM.ORG/naturalist. With modified cameras, NHM s Sam Easterson is able to capture footage of spiders inside their lairs! concentrate on studying natural areas. But as an important international port, new species of spiders from all over the world are being accidentally introduced to the Los Angeles area all the time, and some of these, like the brown widow, have established breeding populations. NHM entomologists are interested in how widespread these introduced species have become, and how they have interacted with the native spiders. They also want to know how urbanization and the loss of natural habitat have affected populations and distributions of native spiders. In a push to collect formerly under-represented local spider species, the Museum wants surveyors this year to hand-collect grounddwelling spiders in their yards and communities, fill out a data form online (see web address below), and send or walk the specimens into the Museum. We expect wolf spiders (Lycosidae), ground spiders (Gnaphosidae), and jumping spiders (Salticidae). But we distribution records, and even the first examples of the now common (but then undetected) South African brown widow spider. Photos by Sam Easterson Written by Kristin Friedrich

5 This important, though somewhat forgotten, artistic legacy is chronicled in a temporary exhibition, Artistic Evolution: Southern California Artists at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, , on display in the Museum s historic 1913 rotunda from October 2, 2011 to January 15, scene when this Museum was the only game in town, in the Museum s seminal 1959 Museum s purchase prize in California Pop Art painters, including 6 7 Guest-curated by independent art historian before the art department moved to mid-wilshire exhibition, Four Abstract Classicists. Baldessari, a student of Lebrun s, Bengston, Ramos, and Ruscha, arguably ARTISTIC EVOLUTION Southern California Artists at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County If you wanted to see art in Los Angeles before the mid-1960s, the Los Angeles Museum of History, Science and Art now NHM would have been the only major art museum in town. In addition to its collections of natural and cultural history, its galleries displayed art from around the world, and hosted major traveling exhibitions of work by da Vinci, Van Gogh, and Renoir. It was also the most important venue for Los Angeles based artists to exhibit their work, making it the cradle of a nascent avant-garde art community. Dr. Charlotte Eyerman, the exhibition is part of Pacific Standard Time, an unprecedented collaboration, initiated by the Getty, that brings together more than 60 cultural institutions from across Southern California for six months beginning October 2011 to tell the story of the birth of the L.A. art scene. Inspired by the Annual Exhibition, Artists of Los Angeles and Vicinity, which took place at the Museum from , and related contemporary art exhibitions, Artistic Evolution presents the history of an embryonic moment for the L.A. art in 1963, and opened as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1965, says Eyerman. It was a time of tremendous change in the art world locally, nationally, and internationally and there was a productive tension at the Museum about the nature of cutting-edge art, and the type of art the Museum Crocker Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Thiebaud. Art Mel Ramos/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY should be showing. The show s title refers to both the evolving modes of art making, and the evolution of this Museum and Los Angeles as an art capital. Featuring 27 paintings, drawings, and prints by 22 artists, which were either exhibited at the Museum, or are comparable to those works that were on display, Artistic Evolution highlights the Museum s role as a standard-bearer for contemporary art in Southern California in the 1940s, 50s, and early 60s. Though some of the artists in the exhibition were local favorites who are not widely known today outside of Los Angeles, such as Ynez Johnston and Howard Warshaw, both of whom were awarded purchase prizes in 1949, others, such as John Baldessari, Robert Irwin, and Ed Ruscha, were young artists in the early stages of what would evolve into influential international careers....artistic EVOLUTION PRESENTS THE HISTORY OF AN EMBRYONIC MOMENT FOR THE L.A. ART SCENE WHEN THIS MUSEUM WAS THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN, BEFORE THE ART DEPARTMENT MOVED TO MID-WILSHIRE IN 1963, AND OPENED AS THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART IN Between these two generations was the highly regarded group of Hard-edge abstractionists, which included Lorser Feitelson, Frederick Hammersley, Karl Benjamin, and John McLaughlin, all of whom were included All are represented in this exhibition, as is artist Helen Lundeberg, Feitelson s wife, who is represented by an oil painting, which won the Annual s 1950 purchase prize. Artists John Altoon, Larry Bell, Billy Al Bengston, Tony Berlant, Hans Burkhardt, Craig Kauffman, Rico Lebrun, Ed Moses, Lee Mullican, Mel Ramos, Betye Saar, and June Wayne are also featured in the exhibition. The revelation in working on this show, says Eyerman, was the range of work and artists that were presented in the Museum s Annual Exhibitions. There was an intermingling of generations, and the emergence of young artists who went on to become titans of the L.A. art world. Given the small, noncommercial nature of the L.A. art scene at the time, most artists supported themselves by teaching, and the show includes several sets of teachers and students. Burkhardt and Lebrun, who led a budding community of modernists, were important teachers for a younger generation of artists. A direct link to New York s abstract expressionists, Burkhardt was one of L.A. s premier artists, and is represented by a painting shown in the 1954 Annual Exhibition. Lebrun, who also exhibited widely, is represented by a small gouache, Study for a Soldier, which won the credits his teacher with encouraging him to become an artist. Baldessari is represented by a small abstract painting, which is comparable to works he showed at the Museum in 1960, and is a rare surviving work from this period. In 1970, the artist burned his early work before embarking on the more conceptually focused painting that would become his signature. Bell, now known for his diaphanous, geometric sculptures, was a 19-year- old student when he first exhibited a watercolor in the 1959 Annual. The work was created in a class taught by Robert Irwin at Chouinard. It was my first show, and the recognition of being included meant a lot to me and to my parents who had paid for art school. From 1950 to 1960, Irwin exhibited at the Museum seven times, and is represented in the exhibition by three paintings. By this time, the famed Ferus Gallery, which opened in 1957, and other contemporary art spaces were operating in the city. Still, the Annual was the only real show of repute, recalls Ferus artist Billy Al Bengston, who was in the 1959 and 1960 Annuals. Everybody entered, and you hoped you could see who was doing what around town. In many ways, it was a springboard for my career. Artistic Evolution closes in 1963, the year the Museum featured six the brightest star of his generation. By this time, Los Angeles was coalescing into a distinctive art center, and LACMA opened two years later to lead it into maturity. More information about Pacific Standard Time is available on our website at NHM.ORG/naturalist.

6 MAXWELL H. GLUCK FOUNDATION S PILOT MOBILE OUTREACH VEHICLE TURNS 20, WITH 230,000 ANGELENOS SERVED. A Taste of History: Pacific Standard Time December 4, 2011, 6 pm Join us for a special Fellows evening with Dr. Charlotte Eyerman, guest curator of NHM s contribution to the major initiative Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A Twenty years ago, the Maxwell H. Gluck Foundation gave NHM a grant After the excavation, they identify the items from researcher field guides, while the other half is in the classroom with a second NHM instructor. The Guests will enjoy a 1950 s-themed dinner and exclusive access to the exhibition Artistic Evolution: Southern California Artists at The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, that would bring interactive education to the children of Los Angeles by coming to their schools. The Earthmobile a portable classroom built inside a semitruck trailer began to rumble all over Los Angeles, from Monrovia to Baldwin Hills, North Hollywood to Compton. and learn firsthand the methods used in scientific inquiry observation, data collection, and making hypotheses. As the NHM instructor roams through the Earthmobile s stations, kids ask questions about Native American culture and whether Chumash descendants are still around. (And one memorable afternoon, about where babies came from though that was classroom portion of the visit used to be a general presentation about the Chumash. It s more interactive now kids study the objects they excavate inside the Earthmobile and contextualize them with the instructors. In a recent component of the grant, the Gluck Foundation now provides transportation for 20 schools to visit NHM after their week with the Crocker Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Thiebaud. Art Mel Ramos/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY For Fellows at the $2,000 level and higher. For details call the Fellows office at (213) or fellows@nhm.org from a student who thought the Earthmobile. Onsite, they get tours program was called the Birthmobile. ) from the same instructors that they Approximately 136,000 worked with in the Earthmobile. schoolchildren have participated in the In 20 years, the education climate Earthmobile s archaeology program has changed so dramatically, says Gina 8 The Earthmobile brings archaeology lessons and activities to schools all over L.A. When students grades 3 5 climb aboard, they dig for artifacts in a Chumash site from 600 years ago. They come upon natural items the jawbone of a pocket gopher or a chunk of quartz crystal or they find an artifact made by the Chumash people themselves, such as a fishhook, a spear point, or mortar and pestles. Visit NHM.ORG/education/outreach for more info. since its launch, not to mention more than 137,000 teachers, parents, and families who have climbed aboard during community events and afterschool programs. The mobile outreach program was such a success that the NHM debuted two more trucks in 1995 and 2001 the Seamobile and the Skymobile, respectively. Those kinds of numbers, and two decades on the road, tend to take a toll. This summer, the Earthmobile got a makeover a deep cleaning and renovated murals and taxidermy. But there have been programmatic changes too. Typically, half a class is in the truck, Hall, Manager of Outreach Programs. Class sizes have gotten bigger, so we re accommodating more students than we have in the past. The ways of teaching have changed a lot, going from a more didactic lecture style to more inquiry-based teaching. And schools needs have changed: There are more students with special needs, and more English language learners coming into the truck. So although the truck has stayed relatively the same, the way we teach that material has changed over time. Written by Kristin Friedrich Roar. Transform your little trick-or-treater into a stomping, roaring dinosaur this Halloween. Available in the Museum Store and online at nhm.org/shop. Support provided by REPTILE & AMPHIBIAN APPRECIATION DAY Sunday, October 9, :30 am 5 pm The 3rd annual Reptile and Amphibian Appreciation Day will have more fun science activities and chances to learn from reptile and amphibian specialists. Meet live animals from around the world and our own backyards. SPECIAL GUEST: Dr. Sean Bush Professor of Emergency Medicine at Loma Linda University School of Medicine 9

7 For Kids: Web of Spiders ACTIVITIES At Home Catch-a-Spider Help us study urban spiders! Here s how: 1 GATHER What you will need: At the Museum Weave Your Own Web Find this spider inside the Spider Pavilion. Learn about the animal and the kind of web it weaves. Then, draw its web! Black widow small note card plastic container old white pillow case data sheet (get one here: NHM.ORG/spidersurvey) You may already know that spiders have eight legs. But did you know that not all spiders spin webs? Web-building spiders weave structures. Wandering spiders don t. Read on to learn even more cool things about spiders. Web-Spinners Place a plastic container 1 Some spiders lasso True False Sheet web spider Funnel web spider Orb weaver spider over the spider. Then slide a note card beneath their prey with wet balls On the right are three common the spider to trap it. of sticky silk. types of spiders. Read the clue Quickly put the lid on 2 Spider silk is stronger True False beneath each spider. Then match the container. than steel. it to the kind of web it weaves. 3 People once used True False Look at the fine print below to A B C spiderwebs like gauze learn the names of each web type. 4 SEND US YOUR SPIDERS pads to stop bleeding. These spiders make These make webs with a These make webs 10 messy, irregular webs. cone-like hole in the middle. with circular spokes. Fill out the data sheet. Make sure to note where you found 4 Spiders shoot silk out True False 11 the spider. Bring your spiders to the Museum s front desk. Or mail them: of spinnerets on their abdomen. Kids? Sheet web Kim Martin? Orb web? Susanne Hammerle Funnel web 2 GO plastic spoon Search for piles of leaves, like under bushes or in flowerbeds. 3 COLLECT gardening trowel With a trowel, scoop some dirt and leaves onto a pillowcase. Use a spoon to stir the material around while looking for spiders. Be careful! On the Defense Spiders use their silky webs to eat and avoid being eaten. Which of these are NOT facts about spider silk?: (Circle your answers) 5 Some spiders make eight kinds of silk. Written by Emily Sohn Illustrations by Keith Knueven True False Answers: 2 and 4 are false, but it s worth pointing out that spider silk is as strong as steel, when it comes to its stretchy strength, and spiders spit silk out of silk glands. Kids

8 NHM Next 12 PROFILE Karen Bristing s 4-year-old son Matthew is crazy about dinosaurs, and that enthusiasm has reignited the entire family s interest in NHM. I hadn t been to the Museum since my 16-year-old son was little, says Bristing, who rejoined NHM at the Patron level. Now we go as often as we can, which is not nearly as often as Matthew would like. Matthew, who is already pondering a career as a paleontologist, spent months waiting for the Dinosaur Hall to open. When the Bristings heard about the Thomas Bone-by-Bone sponsorship campaign, it resonated with the entire family. Whenever I ask him what he wants to do, he always responds, I want to go to the museum of dinosaur bones. When I heard we could sponsor one of Thomas bones, I thought it d be a great thing to do for him, which he d always remember. After considering the sponsorship of several smaller bones, one for each family member, Karen and her husband Steven finally settled on a larger Photo by Karen Knauer opportunity. We decided on the big, strong lower jaw bone, and chose to sponsor it collectively as a family, says Bristing. It was wonderful to show the Dinosaur Hall and Thomas to the boys for the first time with their names listed as donors. Bristing began her career in the software business in the 1980s, working for Lotus Development Corporation in Cambridge, Massachusetts. A bleak March day in 1988 made her jump at a transfer to Los Angeles, and she never looked back. Her first trips to NHM were with a friend s child shortly after moving to the city. She came again with her own son, Andrew, born in 1995, and returned with dinosaur- loving Matthew whose childhood is coinciding beautifully with the evolution of NHM s Dinosaur Hall. I ve seen the Museum evolve and improve over the years, says Bristing. I m constantly learning new things myself. We visit the Butterfly Pavilion every year, and get our caterpillars, and Join the evolution! Contact Tom Jacobson, Senior Vice President of Advancement, at or tjacobson@nhm.org. Karen Bristing watch them metamorphose into butterflies. Matthew and I spend endless hours with the birds. It s fun to see the marsh going from day to night through a 4-year-olds eyes. His current favorite is the fossil wall in the Dinosaur Hall. Now, Bristing owns Equinox Equestrian Center in Sun Valley, CA, a high level facility for equine athletes. Building an equestrian center was a dream with a friend, says Bristing. An athlete herself, she specializes in 3-day eventing, which she refers to as the horse version of a triathlon. As an animal lover, she encourages a love of nature in her children. I grew up in New Hampshire with nature all around us, and my parents taught me to respect it, recalls Bristing. I work on giving that to my boys as well. I want them to have a knowledge of natural history, because the more they learn, the more respect they ll have for living things. The jawbone is sponsored by: Steven, Karen and Matthew Bristing, and Andrew Gross To explore sponsorship or make a gift online, go to NHM.ORG/nhmnext. OCTOBER A San Andreas Odyssey Saturday, October 1, 9 am 5 pm. Led by Museum scientist Lindsey Groves, we ll see firsthand the fault s effect on the topography on this fun and educational journey. Tuesdays, October 4, 11, 18, & 25, 5 8 pm. Learn about our Dinosaur Hall with the scientists who created it. Each evening will include light refreshments, a lecture with Q&A, and a guided tour. Pacific Standard Time: Artists Panel Discussion Thursday, October 6, 7 pm. Join Artistic Evolution artists Larry Bell, Billy Al Bengston, and Betye Saar with guest curator Charlotte Eyerman for an evening of in-depth discussion and insight. Curator s Cupboard: National Fossil Day at Page & NHM Saturday, October 8, 10:30 am 3:30 pm. Join us at National Fossil Day to meet fossil scientists, participate in fun activities, and see some of the best preservations from our collections. Junior Scientist: National Fossil Day Saturday, October 8, 10:30 am &. Celebrate National Fossil Day with us by becoming a Junior Paleontologist and discover how fossils preserve evidence of ancient life! Designed for 6- to 9-yearolds and their families. The Big Draw LA Sunday, October 16, 12 4 pm. Join Ryman Arts, the museums at Exposition Park, and USC on a Make Your Mark in the Park activity. Help create a continuous drawing that winds its way around the park. Fossil Hunting in Silverado Canyon Saturday, October 22, 9:30 am 1. Search for marine fossils with our very own Lindsey Groves. This rich fossil site is a great place to get some dirt under your fingernails! Members receive free admission to all programs unless noted. Reptile and Amphibian Appreciation Day (RAAD) Sunday, October 9, 9:30 am 5 pm. Fun science activities, chances to learn from reptile and amphibian specialists, and live animals from around the world and our own backyards. Haunted Museum Week October Join us all week long for self-guided activities, creepy crawly spider nights (October 21, 28), the annual Haunted Museum (October 23, Naturalist level members and higher), and a spectacular Halloween festival (October 30) complete with a costume parade, safe haven trick-or-treating, face painting, live animal encounters, and more. Critter Club: Super Spiders Friday, October 21, (paid with registration) Saturday, October 22, 10 and 11 am (FREE). We ll watch spiders eat their lunch, create a creeping craft, and hear spider stories! NOVEMBER Overnight Adventures November 4: Camp Goo for Boys (at Page) November 18: Camp Archaeology for Boys and Girls (Group Overnight, at NHM) Join us for an extraordinary night at the Museum! Critter Club: Dig In! Friday, November 18, (PAID with registration). Saturday, November 19, 10 and 11 am (FREE). Come learn how the animals eat and find food with stories, games, and crafts. For 3 - to 5-year-olds and a participating adult. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter We re all over the web! Stay connected by following our Facebook and Twitter accounts, browse and submit photos on Flickr, and check out our YouTube channel for behind-the-scenes videos. NHM s social media sites are a click away at NHM.ORG. For more information about all events, visit NHM.ORG/calendar. Members Only Scavenger s Safari: Treasures of the Gem Hall Saturday, October 8 Join Alyssa Morgan, Mineral Sciences Collections Manager, as she reveals how curators research mineral specimens, and tells the stories behind the discovery and acquisition of some of the department s most extraordinary rocks, gems, ores, and meteorites. Free for members at the Patron Family level and higher. Call to reserve a tour time. Scavenger s Safari: Tar Pit Fun Saturday, November 19 Come explore the La Brea Tar Pits with Museum excavators. Discover the latest Ice Age fossils they recently dug up. Free for members at the Patron Family level and higher. Call to reserve a tour time. 8th Annual Haunted Museum: Fairy Tales and Scary Tales Sunday, October 23 We re kicking off this year s Haunted Museum Week with a VIP Party. Explore our magical wonderlands and sinister woods. Keep step with the dancing men in tights and beware of the evil enchantress. Free for members at the Naturalist level and higher. Visit nhm.org/hauntedmuseum. Collector s Circle Salon Fast and Furious: Cars of Los Angeles Saturday, October 29, 4 pm Museum Trustee William Garland and his wife Katie invite you for an intimate gathering at NHM Gardena. Join them as they explore one of the largest automotive collections on the West Coast. Free for Collector s Circle Fellows members and higher. For more information please call Events noted with this icon are reserved for our members. Join today so you can enjoy the benefits of membership! Visit NHM.ORG or call

9 November MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY AY SATURDAY SUNDAY 1 ONGOING EVENT DESCRIPTIONS NHM FAMILY OF MUSEUMS Meet our amazing, living animals to learn where they come from, what they eat, and more. Critter Club Live animals, story times, songs, and art experiences are just some of the fun activities we have planned! For 3- to 5-yearolds and a participating adult. Curator s Cupboard Get a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse at our amazing collections! Get closer to dinosaurs than you ever thought possible in this amazingly real performance! Check the website for schedule updates. Learn about our spectacular Dinosaur Hall with the scientists who created the exhibit. A Gallery Interpreter gives you the inside scoop on Museum highlights. Come face to face with a saber-toothed cat (puppet) and learn about life in the Ice Age! Check the website for schedule updates. Junior Scientist For 6- to 9-year-olds who want to act like Museum scientists through activities, demonstrations, and an up-close look at cool highlights from our collection. Overnight Adventures These adventures are packed with educational activities, late-night snacks, and a campsite inside the Museum galleries. Dates are available year-round for both groups and families. Scavenger s Safari Hang out with our scientists, and go on a scavenger hunt throughout the Museum! Free for members at the Patron Family level and higher. To RSVP call Spider Pavilion Get up close and personal with these shy and fragile creatures; marvel at their beauty and at the magnificent webs they produce. Separate admission ticketing applies; members are always free. Spider Pavilion is open seven days a week, 5 pm. Support for Spider Pavilion provided by Interactive, themed story time for children. LEGEND Natural History Museum William S. Hart Museum Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits Overnight Adventures Offsite Adventure NHM Member Events Paid Events Group Overnight Adventure 5 11 am / 6 11 am / The Gem and Mineral Hall displays more than 2,000 specimens that comprise what is considered to be one of the finest exhibits of gems and minerals in the world Members receive free admission to all three museums in the Natural History Family am / am / Our latest book, The Age of Mammals, is on sale now in the Museum Stores! Critter Club: Dig In! Group Overnight 19 Time TBD Scavenger s Safari: Tar Pit Fun Critter Club: Dig In (FREE) 11 am / am / Thanksgiving MUSEUM CLOSED am / am / To learn more about the Museum s programs and events visit nhm.org/naturalist. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County 900 Exposition Boulevard Los Angeles, California DINO nhm.org Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits 5801 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, California PAGE tarpits.org William S. Hart Museum Newhall Avenue Newhall, California hartmuseum.org

10 Curator s Cupboard Get a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse at our amazing collections! A Gallery Interpreter gives you the inside scoop on Museum highlights. Gardening Classes In these outdoor classes, we ll teach you how to give yourself and your family delicious, nutritious, and convenient fresh food year-round. Interactive, themed story time for children. Critter Club Live animals, story times, songs, and art experiences are just some of the fun activities we have planned! For 3- to 5-year-olds and a participating adult. Learn about our spectacular Dinosaur Hall with the scientists who created the exhibit. Junior Scientist For 6- to 9-year-olds who want to act like Museum scientists through activities, demonstrations and an up-close look at cool highlights from our collection. Scavenger s Safari Hang out with our scientists, and go on a scavenger hunt throughout the Museum! Free for members at the Patron Family level and higher. To RSVP call Paid Events Meet our amazing, living animals to learn where they come from, what they eat, and more. Get closer to dinosaurs than you ever thought possible in this amazingly real performance! Check the website for schedule updates. Come face to face with a saber-toothed cat (puppet) and learn about life in the Ice Age! Check the website for schedule updates. Overnight Adventures These adventures are packed with educational activities, late-night snacks, and a campsite inside the Museum galleries. Dates are available year-round for both groups and families. Spider Pavilion Get up close and personal with these shy and fragile creatures; marvel at their beauty and at the magnificent webs they produce. Separate admission ticketing applies; members are always free. Spider Pavilion is open seven days a week, 5 pm. Support for Spider Pavilion provided by NHM Member Events Offsite Adventure Overnight Adventures Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits William S. Hart Museum Natural History Museum ONGOING EVENT DESCRIPTIONS LEGEND Local and exotic reptiles and amphibians will be onsite for our annual RAAD event, October :30 pm Spider Night 4 pm Collector s Circle Salon Fast and Furious: Cars of Los Angeles 5 pm Halloween Festival Family Overnight Downsized! What Makes a Bird a Dinosaur? pm 11 am / 11 am / 10:30 a / 11:30 am / Haunted Museum Week! October pm Group Overnight: Spider Night 5 8 pm Haunted Museum VIP Party Death in the Age of Dinosaurs: The Extinctions That Shaped Their Long Evolution 11 am / 5 8 pm / 11 am Critter Club: Super Spiders (FREE) 11 am Critter Club: Super Spiders 9:30 am 1 Field Trip: Fossil Hunting in Silverado Canyon MUSEUM CLOSES AT 3 PM Time TBD Family Camping and Fossil Expedition Trip: Red Rock Canyon Through October 16 October A Day at the Beach: Dinosaurs & Other Life in the Western Interior Seaway Group Overnight Adventure 12 4 pm The Big Draw LA 5 8 pm 11 am / 11 am / 10:30 a / 11:30 am / Members receive free admission to all three museums in the Natural History Family. Group Overnight Adventure Paleontology in the 21st Century 7 pm Pacific Standard Time: Panel Discussion 5 8 pm Time TBD Scavenger s Safari: Treasures of the Gem Hall 10:30 am / Junior Scientist: National Fossil Day 10:30 am 3:30 pm Curator s Cupboard: National Fossil Day 11 am / 11:30 am / / 2:30 / 3:30 11:30 am / / 2:30 / 3:30 11 am / 9 9:30 am 5 pm Reptile and Amphibian Appreciation Day (RAAD) As scary as these creatures may look to you, the Spider Pavilion is safe! Visit it September 25 November 6. 9 am 5 pm Field Trip: San Andreas Odyssey 11 am / 1 2 MUSEUM FREE DAY thanks to the generosity of Bank of America Artistic Evolution opens at NHM as part of Pacific Standard Time 11 am / 1 pm 4:30 pm Gardening Class MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY