Website: https://www.sdnhm.org/
The Collections: Few places in the world are rich in fossil mammals of the same age as the John Day Formation in central Oregon, long a cornerstone of my research, and San Diego is one of the places that does. This means that it was probably inevitable that I'd wind up there at some point, and I'm glad I did. I only spent a brief time in the collections, but the Oligocene rodents and dogs from the Sespe Formation were impressively well preserved and a valuable addition to my data set.
The Exhibits: I'm a sucker for museums that focus on telling the in-depth story of the paleontology of their region, and the SDNHM does as good a job of this as anywhere I've ever been. It starts with dinosaurs from the two Californias (Alta and Baja), showcasing both a great bloat-and-float ankylosaur (complete with attached oysters!) and the international nature of scientific inquiry. Following this is a great overview of Eocene and Oligocene ecosystems of San Diego County and the highlight of the exhibits, a wealth of Pliocene and Pleistocene marine mammals (including walruses, sea cows, and and impressively large and complete whale) and terrestrial megafauna. What really sets the exhibits here over the top are the works of art that accompany them. The paleoartist William Stout was commissioned to create a series of murals as backdrops to the fossil exhibits, and the colorful results collectively represent one of the greatest feats of modern paleoartistry.
Gift Ideas: On the topic of William Stout, his book on the creation of the SDNHM murals is not only lavishly illustrated, but gives some great insight into how paleoartists work.
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