Naturalist Center Changes

As the new year begins, we at the Academy are excited about the many new developments coming in 2012. Just in time for Valentine’s Day, a new aquarium gallery, Animal Attraction, will open February 11th, and prepare to be moved on May 26th with the opening of a major new exhibit and Planetarium show, Earthquake.


Changes are afoot in the Naturalist Center, as well. In order to free up resources to focus on creating more hands-on opportunities for our visitors to engage with science and sustainability, we have made the difficult decision to discontinue making our library materials available for members, teachers and volunteers to take home. The following is a timeline of when these changes will occur:

• February 1, 2012: Last day to get a Naturalist Center lending card
• March 1, 2012: Last day to renew an item already checked out
• April 1, 2012: Books and DVDs will stop circulating (any items checked out before April 1 will be due 21 days from the checkout date)

We know that access to these resources is important to members, teachers and volunteers and want to assure you they will remain available for you to read and watch within the Naturalist Center space. Pages of particular interest can be scanned and e-mailed free of charge, or photocopied for a small fee.


As always, we will continue to offer reference services, helping you find answers to questions about the natural world and assisting with the identification of natural history specimens. The Naturalist Center is—and will continue to be—a dynamic resource for members who are curious to learn more about the natural world. Our commitment to providing quality services and programs has not changed. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us at naturalist@calacademy.org or 415.379.5494.