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Programs & Events Photo Gallery

These images are solely for use by the working press to illustrate a story about the Academy of Natural Sciences. All other potential uses must be cleared through the Communications Office.

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Plastic-free Philly

art installation made of plastic bottles
“Waterline” by Silas McDonough, at The Academy of Natural Sciences, 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Through Jan. 8
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
quilt made from plastic trash
“Schuylkill River Trash Quilt” by Ceilia Jailer, Eli Kleinsmith and Pierie Korostof at MacAlister Hall, Drexel University, 3250 Chestnut Street. Through Sept. 30

Philadelphia Heat Mapping

Volunteers Octavia Jones and her two children, Taegan and Tristen Harris, used the sensor attached to the car to collect heat data in the Bronx as part of the NOAA and partner Heat Island Mapping Campaign, July 2021.
Volunteers Octavia Jones and her two children, Taegan and Tristen Harris, used the sensor attached to the car to collect heat data in the Bronx as part of the NOAA and partner Heat Island Mapping Campaign, July 2021.
Photo courtesy of Octavia Jones
Hunting Park street trees/no trees
Cooling off in a Philly summer
Credit: Richard Johnson
Hunting Park street trees/no trees
Streets in the Hunting Park neighborhood. Those with trees are cooler than those without.

Early Childhood Learning

The Seeds to STEM early childhood learning program is an innovative bilingual program that works with Philly educators or providers, families and children ages 3-5 to promote early science, technology, engineering and math skills, literacy and nutrition to help prepare children for kindergarten.

teacher and kids
kids in garden
young kids raise hands
preschool classroom

Behind-the-Scenes Tours

An Academy scientist shows a moth to a visitor.
Visitors can see our vast entomological collection which houses more than four million insect specimens.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
An Academy scientist shows a hawk to a group of a visitors.
A Red Tail Hawk is among thousands of specimens that lives in our collection of over 205,000.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
Four people are standing in a room with shells in and along the top of a case.
Groups can take a behind-the-scenes tours of the specimen collections, including here in the Malacology Collection.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
A child looking through a microscope.
Groups can see the Diatom Herbarium collection which is one of the largest in the world.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
A group of fossils in white boxes on a table.
The vertebrate fossil collection houses more than 22,000 specimens. 
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS

Hands-on Learning

Two children look at pinned beetle specimens in a box.
Visitors can see insects up-close and in person.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
A staff member shows two children a Madagascar hissing cockroach.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
An adult looks through a microscope while a child looks at specimens on a table.
Hands-on learning at the Academy is fun for both kids and adults.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
Two children, one older and one younger, look at a taxidermy turtle.
Children can see taxidermy specimens. 
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
A child in a yellow shirt puts a red dot on a board while another child watches.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
Two academy staff show specimens to a child.
Academy educators bring specimens to life for visitors.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS
An Academy scientist shows pinned insect specimens to visitors.
An Academy Entomologist shows pinned insect specimens to a visitor.
Credit: Ramon Torres/ANS