Saturday and Sunday, May 19 & 20, 2012

One of the most popular Museum events, Bug Fair is held on the third week of May! The two day Bug Fair is an insect extravaganza with hundreds of things to see and do.

Come back to this site soon to find out what is in store for the 26th Annual Bug Fair!

Bug Fair and other programming (excluding the Butterfly Pavilion) are included with regular Museum admission. For additional information, call (213) 763-3433 or email educate@nhm.org.

Special Guests and Programs from the 25th Annual Bug Fair

Maybe you want to try to see what a bug tastes like or try a hand at the art and science of bug origami? If so, be sure not to miss one of our many special programs that take place throughout the Museum. Bug chefs and special presentations are just some of the special guests that we welcome each year. Learn how to pin an insect for a collection, take part in our citizen science projects, or check out our "back by popular demand" cockroach races! See some exciting presentations including live animal handlings and informational shows put on by our Living Collections staff as well!

Special Buggy Performance Artists
Keep your eyes peeled for our roaming insects and stilted butterflies. You never know when a jumping spider might pop up in front of you for a picture!

Robert Lang Origami
Special Presentations and insect origami demos by the author and artist.

Bug Chef Cook-Off
Ever wanted to see what a bug tastes like? Well, maybe you haven’t, but the 25th annual Bug Fair is the ideal place to give it a shot as we prepare for what will surely be the ultimate bug chef showdown.

Join us as David George Gordon (world renowned Insect Chef and author of the “Eat-a-Bug Cookbook”), Zack Lemann (the Cajun Bug chef from the Audubon Insectarium in New Orleans), Daniella Martin (creator of internet sensation “Girl Meets Bug”) and David Gracer (owner of Small Stock Food Strategies, a company devoted to making insects accessible as food to all) take the stage in an attempt to out-do one another for the chance at bug chef supremacy. With the fantastic insect dishes they will be preparing, the winners will most certainly be our taste buds! Some lucky visitors will even have the chance to be selected as judges during the event.

Big Bug Art by Bamboo DNA!
Bamboo DNA has been responsible for building the largest, most innovative bamboo structures in the U.S. today. Come check out their large bamboo bugs at the Bug Fair!

Insect Art by Steven Kutcher in the Discovery Center
Critically-acclaimed contemporary art paintings by “The Bug Man of Hollywood,” Steven Kutcher, who uses insects as "living brushes."

Special 25th Anniversary Saturday Evening Event

A Taste of Bug Fair with Special Guest, Dr. Art Evans

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of our buggiest event ever, grab a complimentary drink, taste insect appetizers from the Santa Monica restaurant Typhoon, and stay for Dr. Evans’ talk on bug love, "Lust in the Dust."

Entomologist and coleopterist Dr. Art Evans is an author, lecturer, photographer, and broadcaster. He has written many articles and books on insects and other arthropods.

For more information on Dr. Art Evans visit his webpage http://arthurevans.wordpress.com/!