We know. Mother’s Day is right around the corner and everyone is scrambling for the perfect, last-minute gifts. While it’s tempting to play it safe ordering a few random presents from big box stores or mega online retailers, the Museum Store has your back with unique, handcrafted gifts from some of mom’s favorite local artists. […]
In my early 30’s, I first learned about proper care and maintenance for pruning tools. Not to sound dramatic, but it has changed my life. I had no idea the power that basic household white vinegar holds over a pile of derelict tools. We all have that pair of crunchy old clippers, or that socket […]
Praying mantises are true masters of disguise. Like many insects (and other animals), mantises will use their cryptic appearance to blend into the environment. For praying mantises, camouflaging has two-fold benefits. For one, mantises are preyed on by many animals- including birds, lizards, frogs, small mammals and even larger mantises. Staying hidden from these predators […]
Although Earth Day is officially set worldwide for Thursday, April 22, 2021, the Houston Museum of Natural Science is celebrating our planetary home throughout April with Celebration: Earth. All month long, Houston’s science museum is concentrating on our shared home with special nature- and conservation- themed exhibits, tours, and activities for everyone. “Because nature is […]
Exciting things are happening in the Cockrell Butterfly Center! Anita Schiller, Director of the Biocontrol Mosquito Initiative in Harris County Precinct 4 is working with our staff to test an innovative, eco-friendly way to control the population of mosquitoes in Harris Country using a natural predator of everybody’s least favorite insect called the mosquito assassin […]
There is a new addition to the Cockrell Butterfly Center Insect Zoo, a colony of leaf-cutter ants housed in a brand new exhibit! This leaf-cutter ant (Atta cephalotes) colony was acquired by the Cockrell Butterfly Center about 2.5 years ago from Guatemala. It began as a small, “softball-sized” colony that now has grown many times […]
Behind The Scenes Tour of Our Cockrell Butterfly Center Plus Greenhouses Go behind the scenes with Museum entomologists and horticulturists who care for the plants and animals in the three-story rainforest terrarium. The tour includes areas not open to the public–the greenhouses on the 7th floor of the parking garage and containment room. Tuesday, July […]
For anyone looking for a fun way to spend their Independence Day holiday, here’s what’s happening this week at the Houston Museum of Natural Science! Behind The Scenes Tour Of Our Cockrell Butterfly Center Plus Greenhouses Go behind the scenes with Museum entomologists and horticulturists who care for the plants and animals in the three-story […]
By Jeff Cummins, Horticulturist at the Cockrell Butterfly Center in the Houston Museum of Natural Science The Cockrell Butterfly Center was graced (?) a couple of weeks ago by a very special event. One of our corpse flowers, Lou, bloomed for the very first time! Lou is an Amorphophallus peaeoniifolius, a smaller species […]
In 2018, Bugs on Wheels turned 12! For 12 years, Cockrell Butterfly Center and HMNS Education staff members have been driving amazing bugs all over the state of Texas and beyond to teach your kids how to love them. I started the program in 2006 with my entomological counterpart Laurie Pierrel. I would spend my […]
