Stephanie Greenman Stone (415) 379-5121
sstone@calacademy.org

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MEDIA ADVISORY
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Academy Ants Arrive
Ants Settle Into Nests at The California Academy of Sciences 875 Howard St.
Media Preview Tuesday, April 27, 2004, 9:30 to 11:00 a.m.

The ants are marching into the California Academy of Sciences. Six live colonies of ants from around the world will be displayed at 875 Howard Street in the exhibit ANTS: Hidden Worlds Revealed. Visitors will see distinctive nest building and food collecting behaviors of Army ants, Leaf Cutter ants, Harvester ants, Honeypot ants, Carpenter ants, and Argentine ants. The ants will reside at the Academy through May 2005. The media is invited to see the ants as they settle into their nests Tuesday, April 27 between 9:30 a.m. and
11 a.m.

Members of the media will have a chance to preview the exhibit, and to speak with Patrick Kociolek, Academy Executive Director; Terry Gosliner, Academy Provost; and Brian Fisher, Assistant Curator of Entomology and Curator of ANTS. Fisher just returned from an expedition to Trinidad, where he collected a colony of Army ants, over one-million individuals, that will be on display.

WHO: Patrick Kociolek, Academy Executive Director; Terry Gosliner, Academy Provost; and
Brian Fisher, Assistant Curator of Entomology and Curator of ANTS.

WHAT: Six live colonies of ants: Army ants, Leaf Cutter ants, Harvester ants, Carpenter ants,
Honeypot ants, and Argentine ants.

WHERE: The California Academy of Sciences, 875 Howard Street.

WHEN: 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., Tuesday, April 27, 2004

WHY: The California Academy of Sciences opens to the public May 1, 2004 for preview days.
During the preview days visitors will experience the new natural history exhibits including ANTS: Hidden Worlds Revealed. The tanks and animals of Steinhart Aquarium will continue to be installed until the Grand Opening, Saturday, June 19, 2004.

CONTACT: Stephanie Greenman Stone (415) 379-5121

The California Academy of Sciences, including Steinhart Aquarium and the Natural History Museum, is open to the public at 875 Howard Street, Admission to the Academy at 875 Howard Street is: $7 for adults, $4.50 for youth ages 12 to 17, Seniors ages 65+ and students with valid ID, $2 for children ages four to 11 and children ages three and younger will be admitted free of charge. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. www.calacademy.org (415) 379-8000.

The California Academy of Sciences, the fourth largest natural history museum in the United States, is home to Steinhart Aquarium, Morrison Planetarium and the Natural History Museum. The Academy is beginning an extensive rebuilding project in Golden Gate Park. Pritzker prize-winning architect Renzo Piano is designing the new Academy, which is expected to open in 2008.

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