LOS ANGELES, CA.- Dr. Lori Bettison-Varga, President and Director of the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, today announced the Natural History Museum (NHM) in Exposition Park will reopen to the public on April 1, 2021 and La Brea Tar Pits in Hancock Park will reopen on April 8, 2021, with new health and safety protocols in place. The William S. Hart Museum in Newhall remains closed at this time. Tickets for members, community partners and the general public are now on sale for NHM and for La Brea Tar Pits on Thursday, April 1.

Dr. Bettison-Varga said, “The Natural History Museum and La Brea Tar Pits have brought joy to generations of Angelenos for more than a century. We are thrilled to welcome the community back inside them after a full year of closure and to make them more accessible for all Angelenos. As museums of, for and with L.A., we have been witnessing the impact that our outdoor spaces have on visitors, as they return to our Butterfly and Spider Pavilion and connect with nature. In that spirit, while the world strives to heal from the pandemic, we are more committed than ever to providing opportunities that inspire curiosity, relaxation and wonder.”

In accordance with CDC, California, and L.A. County public health guidelines, protocols to protect visitors and staff include reduced capacity, advance online timed-ticket reservations, face coverings for everyone on-site, self-monitoring of symptoms, designated pathways to ensure safe distancing in galleries and gardens, more frequent cleanings and self-service sanitizing stations. All visitors will receive touch styluses upon admission to NHM that may be used to interact more safely with touchscreens throughout the museum. Some visitor experiences that don’t allow for proper distancing will remain closed at each location, including NHM’s Gem Vault, Encounters performances at both museums, and the Observation Pit at La Brea Tar Pits.

NHM and La Brea Tar Pits will open gradually, Thursdays through Sundays, and will expand the days over the coming months. The 2021 Butterfly Pavilion season will be open through September 6, 2021. Tickets for the Butterfly Pavilion will remain free for members and will be $6 for non-members. The Spider Pavilion season will open later in Fall 2021.

NHM will debut the gallery presentation of two exhibitions when the museum opens its doors: Rise Up L.A.: A Century of Votes for Women and Spiky, Hairy, Shiny: Insects of LA.

Rise Up L.A. honors 100 years of passion and progress through narratives about the everyday women who shaped the suffrage movement and the political landscape through voting, grassroots organizing, and by fighting for rights in the workplace, classroom and community. NHM launched a digital version of the exhibition in 2020. Upcoming programs include a special livestream conversation between Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell and NHMLAC President and Director Dr. Lori Bettison-Varga on March 25.

Spiky, Hairy, Shiny: Insects of L.A. presents a selection of insect macrographs pulled from NHMLAC’s groundbreaking Biodiversity Science: City and Nature (BioSCAN) research project. The captivating photographs, captured unconventionally via a Keyence microscope, inspire wonder, and showcase the beauty and diversity of these “minute Angelenos.” Visit the digital companion site here.

NHMLAC will continue engaging audiences through its digital programming and social media channels. Since the Museums closed their doors in early March 2020, NHMLAC has piloted virtual educational programs, including live animal meet-and-greets, Zoom presentations using Visual Thinking Strategies, live Q&As with scientists, and educator workshop webinars that can host up to 1000 participants at once. Virtual daily school programs cover content from archaeology, marine science, paleontology, and ecosystems. NHMLAC has also created four different virtual field trips: virtual visits to La Brea Tar Pits and NHM, as well as digital oceanic and archaeological experiences. NHM’s First Fridays Connected Series continues online on April 2 with the discussion L.A. at the Intersections: Climate Crisis, plus a performance by Sudan Archives.

NHM's neighbor in Exposition Park, the California Science Center, is reopening on March 27, 2021.