Toyon on Los Vaqueros Watershed Miwok Trail
Nature in L.A.
California Holly: How Hollywood Didn't Get its Name
In Nancy Dale’s 1986 epic tome of Southern California native plants, Flowering Plants, she has this to say about Toyon — aka California Holly, Christmas Berry, or, if you’re a botanist, Heteromeles arbutifolia: 
Read more
Cricket
Nature in L.A.
Niña de la Tierra: Children of the Earth
No it's not the title of a horror film, Children of the Earth bug is actually one of the many common names for Stenopelmatus fuscus.
Read more
Brazilian Snail eating lettuce
Research and Collections
A Microscopic Look at Snail Jaws
Have you ever wondered what the inside of a snail's mouth looks like?
Read more
lizard in palm of hand
'Tis the Season for Baby Lizards
Over the past few weeks, baby lizards have been hatching out of their eggs throughout Southern California.
Read more
image of fig beetle
Nature in L.A.
When Fig Beetles Attack!
It’s a beautiful summer day in L.A. and I am strolling across a wide open lawn. The sky is bright blue and decorated with scattered clouds. 
Read more
butterlfy on flower
Naturalist
A Multicolored Kaleidoscope
Watch colorful butterflies flutters in our Butterfly Pavilion.
Read more