Explore the nature of Santa Cruz — wherever you are! Connect with local experts and join your community in deepening understanding about nature, science, and stewardship online and in-person. Stay updated about upcoming events by signing up for our newsletter.

Upcoming Events

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  Fungus February 2025
  Explore a month of fungi fun with the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History! Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of mushrooms through expert-led adventures, creative art projects celebrating their beauty … Read more
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  2/19 Cordyceps, Cappuccinos, & Mind Control
  Fungus February just got a whole lot spookier, especially when the topic is parasitic zombie fungi! Learn about the sinister Cordyceps mushroom that infects insects using mind-controlling spores and turns them … Read more
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  2/21 Spore Prints & Mushroom Painting
  Capture the intricate beauty of mushrooms using the mushroom spores as the painting medium. Utilizing local Santa Cruz County mushrooms as both the reference and art material, participants will learn how … Read more
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  2/22 East Glenwood Mushroom Exploration
  In collaboration with the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County, adventure through exclusive areas as you partake in a fungus exploration! Guided by a master mycologist, prepare to venture into the … Read more
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  2/26 Sky Islands, Sea Islands, Dry Islands, & the Biogeography of Macrofungi
  Making maps of the distributions of organisms is one of the most fascinating topics in all of natural history. The theory of island biogeography serves as an ideal starting point in … Read more
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  2/28 Fluorescent Fungi & Bioluminescent (DNA) Barcodes
  Glowing, glowing, gone! For the last lecture of Fungus February, explore the brilliant world of bioluminesce. In this illuminating lecture, learn about the fluorescing fungi that glow under ultraviolet light, mushrooms … Read more
• 
  3/1 Botanical Scientific Illustration & Observation in Pastel
  Love nature, science, and art but don’t know where to start? Here is your opportunity to master a new skill and bring home your own environmentally-inspired masterpiece after just one class.  … Read more
• 
  3/07 Spring has Sprung for March’s First Friday
  Get to know Santa Cruz’s WILD SIDE at the Museum of Natural History. Nerd out on your night out during monthly after-hours events, featuring rotating themes, vendors, and activities. Free admission to the … Read more
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  3/23 Intro to Plein Air Painting – Sandhills
  Go outside and learn to paint gouache and watercolor landscapes while surrounded by nature as inspiration. This open-air art workshop will teach the techniques necessary to capture environmental perspectives through the … Read more

Registration Policies
Want to know more about our events or share your suggestions about potential topics? Email us at events@santacruzmuseum.org.

Upcoming Nature Club Events

Nature Club takes young explorers (6th-8th grade) into local habitats to learn about the amazing living world around us while making discoveries along the way. Learn more.

Watch previous lectures, tutorials, and more.

• Fungi Fundamentals: Mushrooms of the Bay Area with Christian Schwarz and POST (watch recording)
• Naturalist Night | Animals Underground: The Burrowing and Cave Dwelling Creatures of the Santa Cruz Mountains with Matt Sharp Chaney and Alex Jones (watch recording)
• Caves and Climate Change with Jessica Oster | Online Talk
• Naturalist Night: Reintroducing Fire (watch recording)
• Perils in Paradise: Natural Disasters in Santa Cruz County with Gary Griggs
• Transforming Taxidermy: Remembering Richard Gurnee
• Ancient Coastal Connections: Collaborative Archaeology on the Santa Cruz Coast with Mike Grone
• Santa Cruz Sea Monsters with Geoffrey Dunn (recording)
• Seabright and the Castle: Then and Now with Dr. Gary Griggs
• Remembering Castle Beach: Stories from the Exhibit (recording)

Public Programs at the Museum offer dynamic and inclusive places for learning, dialogue, study, and exploration. Through community outreach, virtual presentations, small-group gatherings in nature, large community events, and stewardship and volunteer opportunities, the Museum builds community around a shared curiosity for and appreciation of the natural environment. Programs help communicate how science impacts our daily lives by connecting local experts with community members, including academics, artists, non-profit organizations, and tribal members.