Ready for the summer already — and summer vacation too? If you’re planning a visit to Southern California once the weather gets hotter, put a visit to the National History Museum of Los Angeles on your calendar. Why? You’ll get to be one of the first to see a dramatic new permanent exhibit that highlights climate change and evolution.

 

“Age of Mammals” will open July 11, taking visitors through a 65-million-year history starting with the extinction of dinosaurs to the potential extinction of humans due to climate change. To be honest, the museum’s description of the exhibit doesn’t put the threats of global warming in such dire terms, but “Age of Mammals” will definitely be “putting climate change and human impact on our environment into the context of long-term geological and evolutionary processes,” according to Dr. John Harris, the curator in charge of the exhibit.

 

Children and adults will be awed by the rare fossil of a newly discovered, extinct species of sea cow, animal specimens like the Simi Valley mastodon and sabertoothed cat, the unique installations including one that shows how whales evolved from hippo-like ancestors, and the architecture of the museum itself, since the exhibit will be housed in the Natural History Museum’s newly renovated 1913 building.

 

The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles is located at 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles — just south of the University of Southern California and the famously beautiful rose garden. Admission costs $9 for adults, and ranges from free to $6.50 for children, depending on age.