BE ADVISED: On Friday, May 15, the North American Mammal Hall and African Mammal Hall on Level 1 will be closed in preparation for Bug Fair. The North American Mammal Hall on Level 2 will remain open.

BE ADVISED: On Thursday, May 14, USC Commencement ceremonies at the LA Memorial Coliseum will impact traffic, parking, and wayfinding around the Natural History Museum. Please plan your visit accordingly, and consider riding the Metro E (Expo) Line and exiting at USC/Expo station.

Villians of Bikini Bottom with Adam Wall

jellyfish fields from spongebob squarepants

We all know that the quirky characters in SpongeBob SquarePants are based on real animals, but did you know that the actual species are even stranger than their TV versions!? Join NHM Collections Manager Adam Wall for a sneak peek of the second largest collection of crustaceans in America and meet the real-life critters that inspired the “biggest” villains in Bikini Bottom—like Plankton! Plus, discover lobsters that live to be 200 years old, sea monkeys that only live for 2 days—every 113 years—and a shrimp that can punch with so much power it can make water explode!

A partnership between nhm and Nickelodeon

logos for NHM and Science of SpongeBob