Camarillo Bird Museum (Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology)

The Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology (WFVZ) is a non-profit based in Camarillo at 439 Calle San Pablo. Informally referred to as the Camarillo Bird Museum, the 22,000 square foot facility is home to one of the largest collections of eggs and nests in the world. The collections include approximately 250,000 sets of bird eggs (equal to over 1 million individual eggs), representing at least 4,000 bird species from around the world. There are also over 18,000 nests, the largest collection of its kind in the world. And over 56,000 bird study skin specimens from over 100 countries.

The Foundation's fundamental mission is to obtain, protect, and manage ornithological collections in a manner that ensures their accessibility to researchers, educators, students, and the public, and to ensure that the materials are used in projects that contribute to the conservation of the world's wild bird species.

The museum offers guided and unguided tours on Wednesdays and Fridays from 10am to 2pm. Guided tours are $10. Self-guided tours are $7.

Visit www.wfvz.org for more information or call 805.388.9944.

Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History

The Natural History Museum (NHM) of Los Angeles County is located at 900 Exposition Blvd. in Los Angeles, near USC. It is open daily from 9:30 am to 5 pm. It was the first dedicated museum building in Los Angeles, opening its doors in 1913. The NHM has amassed one of the world’s most extensive and valuable collections of natural and cultural history—with more than 35 million objects, some as old as 4.5 billion years. The Natural History Family of Museums includes the NHM, the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles and the William S. Hart Museum in Newhall.

Sections of the museum include African Mammals, North American Mammals, Insect Zoo, Gems and Minerals, California History, Birds and much more. In July 2011, the new 14,000 sq ft Dinosaur Hall opened, featuring over 300 fossils and 20 complete mounts of dinosaurs and sea creatures. It includes a Tyrannosaurus rex growth series, Triceratops, Stegosaurus, Allosaurus, long-necked Mamenchisaurus and much more! It is extremely impressive!

My kids were particularly wowed by the Insect Hall, where they were treated to dozens of display of live insects from around the world. In fact, I think they would have spent the entire day in there if they could have.

Insect Hall

Museum admission (as of August 2022) for NHM members and children under 3 are free; children 3-12 are $7; youth 13-17 are $12, seniors 62 + are $12; and adults are $15. Visit www.nhm.org or call 213.763.DINO for more information.

Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History

Founded in 1916, the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History makes for a great excursion to Santa Barbara with the kids.  There are eight exhibit halls with permanent exhibits featuring birds, mammals, insects, ocean life, a planetarium and more. Many of the exhibits are "hands on" with buttons and interactive features that kids particularly enjoy. There are an additional two halls for changing exhibits.

You and your kids can roam the nature paths and visit the well stocked gift shop, full of educational items. I can vouch for the fascination kids (and adults) have at this Museum. It is a very comfortable museum that in my experience is rarely is crowded. The "Museum Backyard" area and gardens has a picnic area, stream and other enjoyable features. The pond and stream often have tadpoles that captivate the kids.

The museum is open 7 days a week and is closed certain holidays. As of July 2019, admission is $15 for adults, $12 for 65+ seniors and teens (13-17) and $9 for children 2 to 12 years of age. Become a Museum member and you don't have to pay for admission. The Museum also offers birthday parties for members. Tax-deductible family memberships are currently $99/year.

Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History is located at 2559 Puesta del Sol Road, Santa Barbara. More information at www.sbnature.org or 805.682.4711.