American Animals Exhibit Opening

The American Animals Exhibit opening event at the Bean Life Sciences Museum was a blast! On Monday, July 6, nearly 600 guests joined us for the opening of our American Animals Exhibit and BBQ in celebration of America 250.

Guests enjoyed hot dogs catered by J. Dawgs, challenged themselves on a rock climbing wall provided by Outdoors Unlimited, and listened to live music performed by the cover band Fire at Will. Families also had the chance to explore the new exhibit while enjoying an evening of fun and community.

It was a wonderful evening celebrating America's incredible wildlife and bringing our community together for a memorable event.

Lydia C., museum educator

2026 Kayak Camp (June 24-26)

Kayak Camp ended on a high note with this final session of camp. 

The kids enjoyed learning all about different types of wetlands, wetland organisms and keystone species. They got crafty making their own wetland filters, invented brand new organisms and their lifecycles and even got to build their very own beaver dams!

Kayaking was the highlight of course, the kids especially loved seeing the different wildlife at the Provo River Delta and Alligator Park. We saw tons of different kinds of birds, cool fish including June Suckers and Carp and we even saw a few minks running along the banks! 

When the wind picked up on Friday, nothing could stop these awesome kids from paddling hard and learning new ways to navigate on their kayaks! 

Kayak Camp was awesome this year and we can't wait for the adventures that await us next year.

Audrey, museum educator

2026 Kayak Nature Experienceship

To start our kayak experience we met at the museum bright and early, then took a couple vans and drove down to the Provo River Delta. The Provo River Delta is a recent project to help the threatened June Sucker, endemic to Utah Lake. This wetland doubles as a great recreation area, with trails to walk or bike, lots of birds to see, fish to catch, and water to kayak! Everyone helped unload the kayaks and then paddled out on the water.

The group went across the entire delta, seeing a wide variety of wildlife along the way. Birds spotted included American Avocets, Black-necked stilts, American Coots, and many Great Blue Herons. And along the edge of the delta, a large Bald Eagle nest and a beaver lodge were spotted. By peeking through the trees, the kayakers saw the perimeter of Utah Lake. As the group paddled back towards the dock, an Osprey flew overhead and perched on a branch nearby. After bringing the kayaks in, the group headed back to the museum and concluded the tour. Thanks to everyone there and we look forward to many Nature Experienceships in the future!

Laurel, museum educator

2026 Kayak Camp (June 22-23)

These past two days at Kayak Camp were a blast! On day one we learned about wetlands, created our own tiny wetlands, invented brand new wetland creatures (including the frogachog, butterfly bird, pizza fish and the chickodile) and played with some mud to create our very own beaver dams. At the Provo River Delta we saw some amazing birds and even some ash falling from the nearby wildfires while out kayaking. 

On day two we went on a birding expedition, found treasure and kayaked out to a bald eagle nest! The kids had so much fun and we can't wait for the adventures we will go on next year!

Audrey, museum educator

2026 Kayak Camp (June 17-19)

This week we learned all about wetlands and their importance to different organisms. On Wednesday, we learned about types of wetlands and made filters using materials found in wetlands. Then we went kayaking on the Provo River Delta, where we learned how to kayak and identify birds. During lunch, Andrea from the Nature Conservancy taught us about wetlands and Utah Lake, and the campers played a trivia game. 

We learned about life cycles and ecosystems on Thursday, and we practiced being “ecosystem architects” by building our own beaver dams at the museum. Then we went to Alligator Park to kayak on the river, where we saw ducklings, fish, a mink, and even a great blue heron! 

On Friday we spent all day at the Provo River Delta. We kayaked out to see a bald eagle nest and saw coots, egrets, ibises, gulls, carp, and pelicans along the way. On land, we did a scavenger hunt and took our binoculars to use in the birding tower, writing and drawing our observations in our field journals. Both educators and campers had so much fun and learned a lot this week! 

Camilla, museum educator

2026 Kayak Camp (June 15-16)

We started off this session of kayak camp with inventing our own weird wetland creatures, like the ayexolotl, petal bird, tere, and jeff. We explored life cycles and the impacts of keystone species on the environment. After making our way to the delta, we spotted avocets, carp, and several massive flocks of pelicans. The next day we brought out our binoculars on the Provo River Delta trail and found eastern kingbirds, white-faced ibises, and even a great blue heron. We documented our findings in field journals and returned to the water, taking a closer look at the bald eagle nest at the edge of the delta. 

Samantha, museum educator

 

2026 Kayak Camp (June 10-12)

This week, we got to learn a bunch about the wildlife living in and around the Provo River Delta, and how wetlands help so many other environments. On Wednesday, we learned about different types of wetlands, then went out on the Provo River Delta to see waterfowl, shorebirds, fish, and bald eagles in their nest! On Thursday, we learned about the life cycles of animals and how beavers shape their environment. We went to Alligator Park to kayak, where we saw some ducks and a great blue heron! We spent all Friday on the Provo River Delta, either kayaking or birdwatching and going on a treasure hunt. We saw a bunch of cool birds and fish, including hawks, hummingbirds, herons, carp, egrets, pelicans, and bald eagles! The whole week, both the kids and the educators had a wonderful time and learned lots!

Elise, museum educator