By Erin Bank

The usual signs of spring are everywhere in Golden Gate Park. Golden poppies and magnolia trees are blooming and the ground is covered in green grass and nasturtium. Adding to this spring fever is the “Spring in the Garden” exhibition at the California Academy of Sciences, ongoing now through April 28.

The highlight is easily Bugtopia – four giant animatronic insects living in the outdoor garden area, complete with lifelike movement and sounds. Visitors can watch a meadow grasshopper, a seven-spot ladybird, a Madagascan sunset moth and a red-tailed bumblebee in their temporary habitat at the Academy.

Melissa Carine, the Academy’s public programs specialist, explained the exhibition is meant to celebrate spring, make the museum feel exciting and to spark a sense of curiosity about the natural world.

“Insects are such an important part of spring,” she said. “We also want to focus on what happens to bugs because of the climate crisis.”

These larger-than-life animatronics let visitors get up close and personal with insects they might otherwise overlook and forget about. It is hard to ignore a giant grasshopper whose mandibles chew, or a giant bumblebee tasting a flower with its tongue-like proboscis.

The Spring in the Garden exhibit is in the East Garden of the Academy, which was redesigned several years ago into Wander Woods, an area for unstructured play in a safe place.

“So much research has been done that shows the importance of non-directive play for children, but not everyone has access to it,” Carine said.

Here, children can make forts with the branches and palm fronds delivered every week by Friends of the Urban Forest. Critters from the park – squirrels, birds, and bugs – also visit and give children the opportunity to connect with resident animal life. Carine has watched children come together in groups to imagine worlds and adventures that include the animatronic insects.

Children can also climb on a giant spicebush swallowtail caterpillar, perfect for photo opportunities.

Another part of Spring in the Garden is Riveropolis, which is a returning hands-on exhibition to the Academy this season. A cloud rains down onto an artificial river, where supplies are provided to let kids construct their own boats and float them downstream. Placards encourage kids to experiment with how they design their boats and see how it affects their journey. Again, Carine explained, it is about observing and open play rather than a formal learning exhibit.

“Caregivers get really into it, too,” she said.

There are also daily puppet shows that teach younger children about insects and their role in the bigger ecosystem. The older kids can also go inside to solve mysteries about animals based on the shape of their skulls. On April 8, when a solar eclipse will be visible (weather-permitting), the Academy will provide sunscopes and have experts available to explain the science behind eclipses.

Spring in the Garden is just a teaser for one of the Academy’s largest new exhibitions ever, California: State of Nature, which will open on May 24, 2024. It will include the reopening of the popular Shake House earthquake simulator. Focusing on native species, people, and geology will bring a fresh perspective to the Academy.

In the meantime, the bugs of Spring in the Garden are waiting for visitors. Learn more at calacademy.org.