Los Angeles, CA (June 26, 2025) – The purrfect exhibition is coming to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (NHM) this summer, as Fierce! The Story of Cats will bring an in-depth look at a wide range of felines to the Exposition Park museum from July 13, 2025, to February 18, 2026.
Spanning continents and the ages, Fierce! The Story of Cats includes an array of incredible mounted specimens, interactive displays, and cultural objects inspired by these fascinating creatures. This exciting new exhibition explores the diversity of felines—their behaviors, unique biology, and complex relationship with humans—and offers an up-close-and-personal experience, highlighting their beauty and predatory skills. From ferocious tigers to beloved pets, the exhibition encourages guests to immerse themselves in the captivating world of cats while illuminating the importance of protecting wild species and their habitats.
“Cats have the impressive quality of being at once very familiar and mysterious,” said Dr. Lori Bettison-Varga, President and Director of the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County. “For many of us, cats are cherished members of our households, and for all of us, they are an integral part of the world’s ecosystems. I hope that this fascinating exhibition inspires a sense of care and connection to the amazing felines that roam our planet, particularly here in Southern California.”
The 10,000-square-foot multidisciplinary exhibition features more than 70 mounted specimens, including fossils, photographs, and ephemera representing felines from all over the world and throughout history. In addition, the exhibition includes a special focus on Southern California, including the beloved mountain lion legend, P-22, and the many large cats that roamed the Los Angeles basin in the Ice Age, as found at La Brea Tar Pits.
NHM visitors will be treated to immersive galleries on the diversity and evolution of cats, along with engaging interactives ranging from touchscreen content to experiencing how cats see in the dark to a “Guess Who?” game of global felines. The exhibition will also focus on cat culture and the ever-growing fascination with cats on social media. It will also illuminate the plight of many species of wild cats that are in danger due to habitat loss, in line with NHM’s commitment to showcasing the importance of biodiversity and habitat conservation.
On-site programming for Fierce! The Story of Cats will include a range of options for visitors of all ages, including a Welcome Day featuring a panel discussion focused around P-22, specific “cat cafe” days, and a special week of the Adventures in Nature Day Camp called Feline Friends (for rising K-5 students).
This is the West Coast debut of this traveling exhibition, which has been updated and expanded to utilize NHM’s broad collections and expertise, and features elements specific to Southern California. The exhibition originated at the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle (MNHN) in France, and was presented at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto and the Field Museum in Chicago.
Fierce! The Story of Cats will be on view at the Natural History Museum in Exposition Park from July 13, 2025 to February 18, 2026 with Member preview days on July 11 and 12, 2025. This exhibition is an add-on experience; a general admission ticket is required for entry. Tickets start at $12 for adults and $6 for children. Members see it for free.
More information is available at nhm.org/cats.
This exhibition was created by the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, France.
The Natural History Museum's presentation of Fierce! The Story of Cats is made possible with support from the Annenberg Foundation
About the Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum (NHM) is one of Los Angeles’s oldest cultural institutions and anchor of the evolving cultural, educational, and entertainment nexus in Exposition Park. NHM’s collection ranges from 4.5 million-year-old meteorites to newly discovered species explored throughout immersive visitor experiences such as Age of Mammals and the award-winning Dinosaur Hall. The outdoor 3.5-acre Nature Gardens and indoor Nature Lab look at people’s relationship with the environment in L.A., while another beloved permanent exhibit, Becoming Los Angeles, examines how L.A. has changed over time. NHM also features industry-leading habitat dioramas, an exquisite gem and mineral hall, a hands-on Discovery Center, and behind-the-scenes experiences such as the Dino Lab, where fossils are prepared in public view. NHM recently opened NHM Commons, a new community-focused wing designed to open new doors to natural history and celebrate the intersections of science, nature, and culture.
NHM is part of the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County (NHMLAC), which also includes La Brea Tar Pits in Hancock Park. Welcoming more than 1.2 million visitors annually — including more than 140,000 schoolchildren — the museums and the 35 million objects in their collections offer extensive and comprehensive libraries of natural and cultural history for guests, as well as groundbreaking scientific and historical research. NHMLAC also leads the natural and cultural exploration of Los Angeles County, offering a slate of community science and cultural programs both onsite and around the area. The museums help foster revolutionary community partnerships, innovative STEAM pathways, transformative community science programs, and cutting-edge research on climate and global change.