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1/10 Nature Journal Studio

Nature journaling can help us view the natural world with new perspectives, learn about our surroundings, and see the extraordinary in the ordinary.

During Nature Journal Studio sessions at the Museum, Melinda Nakagawa will guide you through a topic as we practice skills in a group setting and share our learning with others. We will develop observation skills and awareness of nature, improve sketching skills, and practice strategies to bring the 3-dimensional world onto the page. Rather than an art class, nature journaling is about observation, curiosity, wonder, and honing these abilities.

Wednesday, January 10, 2024
6:30-8 p.m.

Location: Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History
Free with Admission*

Register


*Free for Members and Youth under 18 | $4 General | $2 Students and Seniors

Email events@santacruzmuseum.org with any questions, accommodation requests, or if you have trouble registering.

Accessibility and COVID protocol

  • All experience levels are welcome. Youth under the age of 14 must be accompanied by an adult.
  • It is likely that the programs will take place inside the Museum, but sometimes sessions are held outside (details in confirmation email).
  • Follow the latest guidelines for covid safety.
  • Basic materials are provided, but feel free to bring your favorite nature journal tools.
  • Please leave your pets at home. Trained service animals are permitted.
  • Review more details on our Accessibility page.

About Melinda Nakagawa

Melinda Nakagawa is a biologist, naturalist, and educator with a passion and skill for connecting people to nature. She founded Spark in Nature to guide participants to cultivate a deeper relationship with the natural world, slowing down to nature’s pace and seeing rather than just looking at the world.

With an approach that bridges nature, art, and heart, she welcomes all people regardless of their skill level or background. Through her gentle guidance, hundreds of participants have awakened their spark of curiosity, sense of wonder, and connection to the natural world.

Melinda has partnered with local institutions such as the world-renowned Monterey Bay Aquarium and Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History to lead educator trainings on nature journaling. She leads the Monterey Bay Nature Journal Club’s free online Sunday sessions.

She has an M.S. degree in Marine Science, and has also worked as a naturalist guide, floral designer, and wildlife rehabilitator. For the past two decades Melinda has kept nature journals and continues to learn more from nature with each journal she fills.

Nature journal examples by Melinda Nakagawa.

12/16 Member Meet-Up: Mushrooms

‘Tis the season for mushrooms! Join Museum staffer Marisa Gomez for a guided exploration of the Santa Cruz Mountains where we will work together to identify what we find in the duff and stumps of redwoods, firs, oaks, madrones, and more.

Saturday, December 16, 2023
10 a.m. to noon

Free
Member Exclusive | Join today!

Register

Accessibility

  • Location details and further instructions will be shared with registrants in advance of the program. The location. will be in Santa Cruz County within a 20 minute drive of the Museum.
  • Please leave your doggos at home. Trained service animals are permitted.
  • As is the case with most mycologic, botanic, and geologic explorations, we will likely not travel very far due to constant distractions and pauses. That being said, be prepared to traipse through the woods on uneven terrain for up to 2 miles.
  • We will be helping each other identify the mushrooms that we find and no prior knowledge is required.
  • We encourage you to bring a copy of Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast to aid in your identifications and help you develop skills that you’ll be able to take with you after the program. Members receive 10% off in our store.
  • iNaturalist is a useful tool to aid in your identifications, as well as support an effort to document our area’s biodiversity. We invite you to consider downloading the app ahead of time and we will help you learn how to use it.

About the Walk Leader

Marisa Gomez is the Community Education and Collaboration Manager at the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History. Her specialty is in facilitating experiences where communities can connect and build skills together over a shared appreciation for nature. She’s particularly fond of mushrooms, rocks, and natural dyes.

The Curious World of Seaweed

This extraordinary exhibition features captivating color “portraits” of seaweed, inspired by Josie Iselin’s book of the same name. The exhibition shares surprising stories highlighting Indigenous peoples’ and women’s connections to seaweed and examines its vital role as the base of the food chain.

Seaweeds have three requirements for survival: something to hold onto, sunlight to provide energy, and nutrients to fuel growth. They find these three elements in a thin section of the ocean, which accounts for less than two percent of the entire sea floor. Yet seaweeds are the supreme eco-engineers, oxygenating the waters and creating habitats for countess organisms. This exhibition examines how these surprisingly sophisticated marine plants keep our planet opulently rich in life. 

Order the Book

Pick up a copy of the book that inspired the exhibit, The Curious World of Seaweed. In this beautiful volume Josie Iselin explores both the artistic and the biological presence of sixteen seaweeds and kelps that live in the thin region where the Pacific Ocean converges with the North American continent—a place of incomparable richness. 

Order it Online

Also available for purchase in-person at the Museum Store.

Josie Iselin is a photographer, author, and designer of many books. Her newest book, The Curious World of Seaweed, presents visually rich narratives of our iconic West Coast seaweeds and kelps. It was released by Heyday Books in August 2019 and has been shortlisted for the Northern California Book Award and the Alice Award, recognizing illustrated books. She holds a BA in Visual and Environmental Studies from Harvard and an MFA from San Francisco State University. She currently teaches in the School of Design at SFSU.

Visit her website: https://bullkelp.info/

Explore More About Seaweed

  • Video: Kelp and Conservation
    This Collections Close-Up video explores two kinds of conservation: the preservation of biodiversity records in the form of marine algae specimens and the fight to save the kelp forests of the California … Read more
  • Monterey Bay Algae Guide
    Dip your toes into the world of algae with this illustrated guide to local species and foraging ethics. Monterey Bay Algae: An Illustrated Guide to Appreciating Algae (PDF | HTML) Monterey Bay … Read more
  • Collections Close-Up: On Kelp and Conservation
    From glittering blues to shimmering silvers, the ocean punctuates the visual landscape of all who are fortunate to spend time along the Monterey Bay. Yet many of the beauties of the bay … Read more

The Curious World of Seaweed is a traveling exhibition from author and artist Josie Iselin in partnership with Exhibit Envoy. The exhibit is based on the book of the same name by Iselin (Heyday Books).

Thanks to Our Exhibit Sponsors

FULL 11/18 Family Fun with Tule

Get crafty with us for some hands-on learning this Native American Heritage Month. Join us for a Family Fun event all about tule, a plant traditionally used by local Indigenous communities to create different items and tools. During this event, Museum educators will help families create boats and other crafts.

Saturday, November 18, 2023
1-2:30 p.m.
Free | Donations Appreciated 

This program has reached capacity.
Email events@santacruzmuseum.org to be added to a waitlist.

Email events@santacruzmuseum.org with any questions, accommodation requests, or if you have trouble registering.

Accessibility 

  • All ages are welcome. However, this program is best suited for children ages 5 years & older and their families.
  • Instructors will adapt the program for the needs of the group.
  • Youth under the age of 14 must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
  • All materials will be provided for registered participants. 
  • Restrooms and water fountain will be available inside the Museum during this program. 
  • Recommendations: Wear layers, comfortable shoes, sun protection, and bring any snacks/water you might need. 
  • Please leave your pets at home. Trained service animals are permitted.
  • Follow the latest guidelines for COVID safety at the time of the program.

11/16 BIPOC Bonfires

Be in community for monthly bonfire talks at Seabright Beach led by local leaders of color, in partnership with County Park Friends. November’s conversation will focus on Native American Heritage Month.

Thursday, November 16, 2023

BIPOC Hours: 4-5 p.m.
Location: Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History

BIPOC Bonfire Talks: 5-6:30 p.m.
Location: Seabright Beach

Monthly Series Topics

  • February 28: Kick-Off Event!
  • March 16: Buffalo Soldiers with Aniko Milan
  • April 20: Colorism and Internal Racism with Santa Cruz Black
  • May 18: Black Expressive Arts and Silent Disco with African Roots Social Club and Dewitt Productions
  • June 22: BIPOC Roller Skaters History of Venice Beach with County Park Friends
  • July 20; BIPOC Joy with Areperia 831
  • August 17: Father Taj
  • September 21: National LatinxHeritage Month with County Park Friends
  • October 19: TBD
  • November 16: National Native American Heritage Month with County Park Friends

About the Series/Sobre la Serie

Check out the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History during special extended hours for our BIPOC community, then walk over to the beach to enjoy time together around the fire learning about historic or significant BIPOC figures, amazing natural wonders or discussion of issues we face today. This series continues on the 3rd Thursdays of the month 4-5 p.m. at the museum and 5-6:30 p.m. at the beach!

Visite el Museo de Historia Natural de Santa Cruz durante el horario extendido especial (el mismo día 4-5) para nuestra comunidad BIPOC, luego camine hasta la playa para disfrutar del tiempo juntos alrededor del fuego aprendiendo sobre figuras históricas o significativas de BIPOC, asombrosas maravillas naturales o discusión de los problemas que enfrentamos hoy. ¡Esta serie continúa los terceros jueves del mes de 4 a 5 p. m. en el museo y de 5 a 6:30 p. m. en la playa!

Collection Club

This invitation is for Museum club-level members and a small group of our friends to preview our new exhibit and view collections items not regularly on display.

We hope you will join us as we close our very popular exhibit, Underground: Unearthing Unseen Worlds, hear insights from our exhibits team, and prepare elements for our upcoming exhibit, The Curious World of Seaweed.    

Thursday, November 9, 2023 from 5:30 to 7:30 PM

Save your spot and register here

Light refreshments will be served

Naturalist Night | Animals Underground: The Burrowing and Cave Dwelling Creatures of the Santa Cruz Mountains with Matt Sharp Chaney and Alex Jones (watch recording)

Beneath our feet is a world of creatures seldom seen. Join local experts for this set of short presentations at the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History exploring the mysteries of the underground. Alex Jones, UC Santa Cruz Campus Natural Reserve Manager, will share the secrets of UC Santa Cruz’s karst caves and burrowing insects, while Matt Sharp Chaney, Midpen Wildlife Biologist, will share stories of salamanders and squirrels, badgers and broad-footed moles, kangaroo rats and kingfishers, and more.

This program is in support of the new exhibit, Underground: Unearthing Unseen Worlds, and is presented in partnership with Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District.

Matt Sharp Chaney is a Wildlife Biologist and the Lead Mammologist for the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (Midpen) where he has worked for the past 8 years. Prior to working at Midpen Matt worked as an Educational Assistant at the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History and he is excited to return for this Naturalist Night. Matt received a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from California State University Monterey Bay in 2015, and a master’s certificate in wildlife management from Oregon State University in 2018. Midpen manages over 65,000 acres of public preserves located within the Santa Cruz Mountains along the San Francisco Peninsula. Matt’s work focuses on the conservation of native mammal species from bats, to kangaroo rats, to mountain lions. 

Alex Jones has been an environmental educator for 25 years, practicing natural history while leading students ranging from preschoolers to senior citizens, though he traces his naturalist roots to his own childhood experiences of playing with mud, scaring ducks, and hiding in the shrubbery. Alex currently works as the UC Santa Cruz Campus Natural Reserve Manager and supports education, research, and stewardship activities on campus natural lands. He brings his passion for natural history, ecology, and stewardship to UCSC students through undergraduate course field trips, internships, and volunteer opportunities. As part of his duties, Alex is responsible for monitoring and managing for the federally endangered Ohlone tiger beetle populations that occur on the UCSC campus. Prior work has given him the opportunity to participate in inventories and studies involving plants, invertebrates, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds in the eastern and western US.

Accessibility

  • The event will occur inside the Museum and is wheelchair accessible.
  • Restrooms, water fountains, and light snacks will be available.
  • Parking is first-come-first-served in the neighborhood. Bike parking is available near the museum entrance.
  • This program will be in English.
  • If we are able to record the program, it will be added to this webpage after the event.
  • Masks are not currently required indoors, but we will alert registrants if an increase in covid transmission rates triggers that requirement.
  • Reasonable accommodation requests can be made by emailing events@santacruzmuseum.org.

Photo credit Matt Sharp Chaney, Alex Jones, Santa Clara County Parks, and Christine Fielding.

Museum of the Macabre 2023

Thank you to the many community members who joined us for the 7th annual Museum of the Macabre! You can peruse photos from the event here.

Come in costume and imbibe cauldron-concocted cocktails while exploring the chasms of the world beneath our feet. The seventh annual Museum of the Macabre will be bigger than ever with freakish festivities and special exhibits outdoors and inside the Museum’s galleries. This year’s tricks and treats will unearth the mysteries of the underground:

  • Costume contest (see below for details)
  • Outdoor movie screening of Tremors from Westside Video
  • Natural dyes with mushrooms
  • Freakish features including mysterious fossils, creepy crawlies, magnificent minerals, fascinating fungi, and more
  • Admission to the new exhibit Underground: Unearthing Unseen Worlds
  • Treats for sale including Areperia 831, Adobo2Go, Discretion Brewing, and curated cocktails
  • Many other shocking examples of nature’s dark side…
  • Explore photos from last year’s event here.

$15 Members | $25 General

21+ | Admission includes one free drink ticket.
Online presale discounts end October 27.
$30 at the door. Space is limited.

Saturday, October 28, 2023
6-9 p.m.

Online sales have closed. Tickets available at the door for $30.

Costumes

  • Dress on theme for a chance to win a costume prize! This year’s theme is THE UNDERGROUND (think creepy crawlies, caves, mushrooms, earthquakes, landfills…)
  • Costumes should not be obstructive or offensive in nature.
  • Costumes should not contain sharp or pointed objects, or materials that may accidentally strike guests or exhibits.
  • Costumes should not contain any elements which resemble or could easily be mistaken for an actual weapon.

Accessibility

  • The event will occur at Tyrrell Park and inside the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History.
  • Limited number of tickets available and online presale discounts end October 27.
  • Please follow local guidelines for COVID safety at the time of the event.
  • The Museum and restrooms are wheelchair accessible. Park festivities will be on both level and slanted grass. The movie and costume contest will occur in the amphitheater behind the Museum where there are steps to enter. Both will be visible from the grass above.
  • Please leave your pets at home. Trained service animals are permitted.
  • Review more details on our Accessibility page.
  • Email events@santacruzmuseum.org with any question, help with registration, or accommodation requests.

Thank you to our partners!

Caves and Climate Change with Jessica Oster | Online Talk

The Santa Cruz Mountains are full of limestone caves that hold many secrets, including records of our climate past. Join Dr. Jessica Oster for an exploration into White Moon Cave where she researches stalagmites (mineral formations growing up from cave floors) that record the climate and environment above the cave as they grow. One stalagmite from White Moon Cave has revealed linkages between the plant community and fire activity above the cave and “climate whiplash” or oscillations between extreme wet and dry periods that occurred over 8,000 years ago. We will discuss how climate records from stalagmites are created as well as the unique things we have learned about California climate from Santa Cruz Mountains caves.

This program is in support of the new exhibit Underground: Unearthing Unseen Worlds.

About the Speaker

Jessica Oster is an Associate Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. She completed her PhD at the University of California, Davis. Oster studies chemical variations in cave mineral formations such as stalagmites to reconstruct climate change in the past, including changes in rainfall, vegetation, and fire activity above the cave. She has developed stalagmite-based records of climate change from caves in northern and central California, Wyoming, Tennessee, India, and the island of Curaçao.