Open Day Naturalis- LiveScience

Naturalis is the national research institute for biodiversity. These scientists work every day to describe, understand, and preserve biodiversity. During the Open Day, they will host a variety of activities in the LiveScience Hall!

Naturalis Now: the latest Naturalis news! – 11:00 to 11:15

At Naturalis Now, you’ll hear the latest updates from our collection and our researchers. What are the newest discoveries? Have any special finds been dug up or washed ashore? Take a seat in the stands and join this interactive presentation. No registration required.

Discovery Chests – ongoing

The Discovery Chests on the first floor of LiveScience are full of things to explore. Roll up your sleeves and learn all about seeds, stones, shells, and droppings. No registration required.
This interactive experience lets you become a real researcher. The chests are available every day, ready to be discovered. When will you stop by?

Dinolab – ongoing

In the middle of the museum, you can witness something that usually happens behind the scenes: our Dinolab is working on real dinosaur bones. Excavated dinosaur bones are being cleaned of stone here. It’s quite noisy and dusty of course, but staff are happy to pause and talk to you about whatever you’d like to know.

Help color the Origins of Imagination artwork – ongoing

Since late 2024, LiveScience has hosted an interactive artwork: Origins of Imagination by British multimedia artist Dominic Harris. You can scan your colored butterfly drawing and watch how AI transforms it into a realistic, moving butterfly. All butterflies together fly in swarms on a large screen. If you save your drawing, you can use the QR code to find your butterfly again during a future visit.

Spotlight on Experts: How Old Can You Get? And What’s the Turtle’s Secret? – at 13:00 and 15:00, registration not necessary

Did you know that bats live ten times longer than ordinary mice? That lobsters seem to get younger as they age? And that a whale shark can celebrate hundreds of birthdays? On Saturday, July 5, you can discover the answers to these and many more surprising questions at Naturalis!

Two real longevity experts – Bart Braun from Naturalis and aging scientist David van Bodegom from Leyden Academy on Vitality and Ageing – will take you on an exciting journey through the animal kingdom in the LiveScience Hall. They’ll reveal the clever tricks animals use to grow incredibly old, and what we humans can learn from them to perhaps live to a hundred (or beyond!) ourselves.

By the end, you’ll know how many candles a whale shark can blow out – and the secret to a long and happy life!

There are two sessions: from 1:00 to 1:30 PM and from 3:00 to 3:30 PM. The session is in Dutch. No registration required.

Species Safari – Location: De Stal – Ongoing

How many types of plants, animals, and fungi live in Leiden? Join Naturalis on a species safari. Using dip nets, magnifiers, and identification cards, we’ll map the species around the museum. Will you help us search? This activity runs continuously from 11:00 to 15:00. No registration required.

Please note: The LiveScience Hall is freely accessible. Admission to the rest of the museum is not included in the Open Day. Tickets must be purchased separately on the Naturalis website.