Stories

Welcome to Stories, a place to explore—and be inspired by—the wonder of our natural and cultural worlds.

Tania Collas wearing magnifying head piece and purple gloves while holding a small paintbrush up to a mural

Restoring a Los Angeles Mural

The unsung heroes working behind the scenes to keep collections looking their best

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A wide-angle, eye-level studio photograph shows a deep, rounded bowl crafted from a polished coconut shell. The bowl is tilted slightly to the right, resting on a small, pointed nub at its base. It sits against a neutral, light-gray background. A black-and-white centimeter scale bar is positioned in the foreground for size reference.

A Virtual Tour of the "Cup" Collections

Explore the collections of the Natural History Museum through the lens of the vessel!

Side view of a mountain lion with Hollywood sign in the background

How a Mountain Lion CHANGED L.A. Forever

The P-22 Documentary

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Band playing on stage under red and yellow lighting

First Fridays: 20th Anniversary Season

Celebrating 20 years as Los Angeles’ premier museum after-hours experience

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South LA Cafe co-founders Joe and Celia Ward-Wallace smiling together inside their cafe. A teal graphic banner across the bottom features the company name and their signature "Western" horchata latte.

Brewing Resistance and Resilience

South LA Cafe | Celia & Joe Ward-Wallace

Pollinator Meadow in the Nature Gardens Spring

Nature Gardens Wins Award

Distinguished for its home-grown organic gardening practices that eschew pesticides, our museum lets plants and insects co-exist.

A small coquÍ frog in some beautiful foliage

Research and Collections

The Songs of the Coquí Frog

The soothing sounds of home or a sonic menace? How you feel about the coquí's call depends on context, but when coquí frogs call in L.A. County, NHM's Herpetology Curator Dr. Greg Pauly answers.

A life-like painting of a large lizard lurking over a nest of dinosaur eggs with one already in its mouth

2025 Excavated: A Look Back at Some of the Biggest NHM Discoveries

From prehistoric giant lizards and ancient raccoons to newly discovered spiders and heroic extinct dugongs, NHMLAC researchers had a busy year describing new species. Meet some of the coolest creatures our researchers described this year, along with other inspiring discoveries.