Los Angeles vacation 3/1, part two: Natural History Museum

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Here is my wonderful entomologist friend rockbalancer taking us on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Natural History Museum. She's holding an insect with astounding cryptic shape and color making it look like a damaged leaf. These are in the same group as walking sticks--us bug nerds call them all "phasmids."



Another fabulous phasmid. This one was still in training to be a program animal. Seems like a pretty big arthropod, right?


But here's a mounted specimen of the world's largest arthropod, a Japanese spider crab! I goofed by not having someone pose with it for scale, but suffice it to say that middle head/body part is bigger than a basketball. This is yet another thing that I read about when I was a little kid but never saw until this trip.


Me and my pal in the hall of heads! How could I not wear my house centipede t-shirt?


"This is our favorite one," the song goes. Actually, this is the most disturbing piece of taxidermy I've ever seen, and I've seen my share.


This is an exhibit under construction, with the theme of KILLER HOUSE CATS. See, I didn't make it up.


Here's a giant sloth skeleton, doubtlessly pulled out of the tar pits.


And a big ol' triceratops! (Definitely not from the tar pits.)


Some of the offices have old taxidermy dioramas at the back of them. This snow leopard appears to have killed itself a peacock (green pheasant?) for dinner.


"You know my office--it's the one with the kangaroos!" There are cockatoos taking dust baths at the bottom of the diorama.


Then as night fell, it was First Friday, so the museum became a night club!