Titanoboa: Monster Snake

There’s a new animal on display at the museum; some might even call it a new monster!  Its name is Titanoboa!  Titanoboa cerrejonensis was a massive snake as long as a school bus.  It lived fifty-eight million years ago in a swampy jungle in what is now Colombia.  By this time, dinosaurs had gone extinct and the region was covered in familiar-looking, albeit monster-sized plants and animals.  This snake looked a lot like a modern boa but acted a lot like a modern anaconda.  Boa constrictors can grow up to fourteen feet long, and anacondas can reach lengths of twenty feet, but nothing compares to Titanoboa at 42 feet long. That's a long snake!  Both boas and anacondas kill their prey by constricting - or squeezing - them to death.  Titanaboa was also likely a constrictor, however, it could grow over forty feet long and weighed more than a ton!  When constricting prey, it could exert 400 lbs of pressure per square inch.  It also had more teeth than either kind of snake previously talked about.  This might have helped it eat slippery fish even though it was large enough to chow down on alligators, dyrosaurids, and anything else that got in its way!  Next time you’re wandering through the Paleocene jungle, watch out for these slithery reptiles!

On December 16, 2017, the new Titanoboa exhibit will open at the Monte L. Bean Life Science museum.  The exhibit will feature a life-size replica of Titanoboa created by the Smithsonian; information about how this ancient snake was discovered in a Colombian coal mine; and interactive elements to help you learn about snakes.  You might even be able to pet a real life snake!  (One much friendlier than Titanoboa!)  Come learn about our slithery, scaly friends!"

Also keep your eye out for our Titanoboa bus ad, slithering its way around Utah and Salt Lake County!

Clue Date Night

During our detective's date night, we had an unfortunate turn of events, with the mysterious murder of Mr.Bean! We were extremely fortunate that we had the best detectives in town at our dinner. They were able to finalize the suspects down to six of Mr. Bean's closest friends:












After their diligent searching for clues and intuitive interrogations, one clever couple accused Mrs.Peacock of using Mr.Bean's own storage of cobra venom to murder him in the billiard room of his home. After her arrest, she claimed her motive was due to an under appreciation for her hunting skills and rising popularity among animal rights activists. Thanks to all our fantastic detectives who joined us and helped put Mrs. Peacock behind bars!

Halloween Family Night 2017

Thank you to the over 1900 princes and princesses, wild animals, Pokemon masters, superheroes, Jedis, and all other costumed friends that joined us for our Halloween Family night!
We had a lot of fun making Spider Finger Puppets, watching our special Halloween show, spinning our prize wheel, and taking pictures in our photo booth!

Happy Halloween and enjoy the rest of 2017!

SNAKES! An Interview with Dr. Jack Sites

Thank you BYU radio for interviewing our wonderful curator of herpetology, Dr. Jack Sites! In this interview, Julie Rose and Dr. Sites talk about the ancient snake, Titanoboa, and how it compares to modern snakes. Follow the link to listen to the interview, and be sure and check out the Titanoboa exhibit at the Bean Museum, coming December 16th!

BYU Radio Interview with Dr. Jack Sites

Nature Experienceship: Wild Edibles with Tom Smith

Everyone loves to eat! We were lucky enough to join Tom Smith as he led us around BYU campus, collecting and trying different edible plants. We had quite the group, thirty happy participants (and a few young adventurers) come out to discover what amazing and delicious plants could be identified and used.

We started off in the lab, where Tom gave us acorn flour cookies and explained the plan for the morning. We walked along the trail on the south side of campus, stopping every couple feet to learn about a new plant and it's delicious and nutritious roots/leaves/berries/blossoms. Most of the plants were familiar, but were brought into a new light during this Experienceship. A few of the plants we enjoyed included yew berries (which have a poisonous pit, but a very sweet fruit), elderberries, black walnuts, prickly pear, wild strawberry, and even basil and kale! 

After our morning walk, Tom led us back to the lab where he prepared some samples made from wild plants and fungi. The spread was amazing, including alder smoked salmon (caught and smoked by Tom on his last trip to Alaska), acorn flour bread, Oregon grape jelly, and a wild mushroom soup. Everyone learned so much and were very appreciative of everything Tom shared with us. 

If you want more information on wild edible plants, consider reading Euell Gibbons', Stalking the Wild Asparagus or contact Monte L Bean Life Science Museum for more information. And remember, never eat any plants unless you are as sure it is as safe as eating a plant you bought from the grocery store. 

Nature Experienceship: Birding with Merrill Webb

Birds, birds, and more birds! This past Saturday, as part of our Nature Experienceship, we had the opportunity to go birding with the wonderful Merrill Webb. The day started early as we headed down to Farmington Bay, a waterfowl management area in Farmington, UT. As soon as we were there we spotted our first bird, a Snowy Egret. From then on we were able to spot a lot more species. Our first location at Farmington Bay was a nice little lake where there were hundreds of birds. We spotted more Snowy Egrets as well as some pelicans and avocets feeding, which was quite the sight. We also were able to spot a beautiful Great Blue Heron and a group of Great Egrets. Dr. Webb did a great job helping us spot lots of birds as well as help us identify them. With the help of some guide books, everyone became experts at identifying all of the birds we were seeing.

After spending some time looking at and identifying all of the birds on the water, we headed farther into the management and stopped at a place called Egg Island. On our way to Egg Island, we were able to see a few more birds including a bird of prey, the Northern Harrier. Egg Island isn’t really an island, but it’s hill where you can see birds on all sides, it was the perfect spot to find some birds. Once we were on Egg Island, we began spotting and identifying even more birds. To the left of us were thousands of ducks on a lake. They were too far away to really identify and their winter plumage made it that much harder, but we were able to identify the Ruddy Duck from the group because of its stiff-tail. Through the scope on the right of us we could see some gulls and sparrows and we even saw some wooden ducks that hunters had put up. After some time looking at all of the wonderful birds, we decided to head out and stop by one more place

We left Farmington Bay having seen 29 bird species and hoped we could find one more to make it a perfect 30. Dr. Webb took us to a nice place called Powell Lake in Lehi, UT in search of our last bird species. Unfortunately, there weren’t very many birds at Powell Lake, except for the Mallard, but right as we were leaving we saw one more bird fly over head that we were able to identify as the California Gull. And with that, we had spotted 30 different bird species just in one morning. It was quite the day for both the beginner and the more practiced bird watcher. If you’re interested in learning more about the different Nature Experienceships and learning opportunities that we offer at the museum check out our website or sign up for our mailing list on the right side of this page! You won’t want to miss out on our next adventure!

Paige, museum educator

Here is the full list of all of the bird species that we saw:

Snowy Egret

Pied-billed Grebe

Mallard

Forster’s Tern

Red-winged Blackbird

American White Pelican

Great Egret

Great Blue Heron

Killdeer

Greater Yellowlegs

American Avocet

Northern Shoveler

Northern Pintail

Ring-billed Gull

White-faced Ibis

Franklin’s Gull

Black-billed Magpie

Violet-green Swallow

Northern Harrier

Ring-necked Pheasant

European Starling

Barn Swallow

Western Grebe

Black-necked Stilt

Double-crested Cormorant

American Coot

Osprey

Ruddy Duck

Eurasian Collared Duck

California Gull

Nature Experienceship - Insects with Dr. Shawn Clark

It’s a bug eat bug world out there! Did you know that there are over 900,000 different species of insects in the world?  It is estimated that there are still 2 million to 30 million species that still have not been discovered! That is a lot of creepy crawlies! Museum patrons were able to dive into this vast world of insects by attending the Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum’s annual Insect Nature Experienceship.  Patrons were able to learn the basics of entomology (the study of insects), through the help of the museum’s very own Arthropod Collection manager, Shawn Clark.  Dr. Shawn Clark has dedicated much of his life to observing, researching, and collecting various species of insects found throughout our world. His superior ability to teach and inspire others made him the perfect person to lead the patrons through in-depth discussions about insects.

The Experienceship began with a backstage tour of the Arthropod Collection, where patrons were able to see why Dr. Clark collects insects for research, and how to properly document and display them as specimens. Though insects may be small, it still takes a large team of researchers to be able to maintain the vast collection of insects the museum has. Through the tour of the collections, patrons were able to see how collecting specimens allows researchers to learn more about insects, so that they may be able to understand each species and how they relate to the circle of life.

Once the patrons learned about insects and collections, they had the opportunity to put their knowledge and skills to the test. As the collections tour came to an end, it was time for the patrons to pack up the van with supplies, and head to South Fork Canyon to capture their own insect specimens. With nets in hand, and with some guidance from Dr. Clark, the patrons began to search and capture their very own insects. Dr. Clark explained the best methods of capturing insects, and how to store them properly for later use in their collections. The patrons did not have to wander through the wilderness far before they had some exciting catches. Museum educators and Dr. Clark were on hand to help patrons extract many kinds of insects from their nets and assist in identifying each species. Some of the insects discovered included crab spiders, blister beetles, stinkbugs, wasps, caterpillars, and many more!

As the patrons collected their insects, Dr. Clark explained to them what insects were good to keep as specimens, and how to properly document them. This would not only help them remember the great experience they were having, but it would also help in properly documenting their research efforts for the future.  With every new species caught, the patrons would share their finds to one another as Dr. Clark gave background information on each species. In the end, every patron went home with a full jar of specimens to use for their own collections.

Throughout the Insect Nature Experienceship, the patrons had incredible opportunities to explore and discover the insect world that is always around them. Not only were they able to tour a real museum insect collection, but they also had the opportunity to head out into the field and have hands-on experience capturing their own insects. Each patron had a wonderful time on the trip and learned on a personal level, that it really is a bug’s life! We encourage anyone who would like to have this once in a lifetime experience to join us in the coming years to the Insect Nature Experienceship.  After all, it is the bee’s knees!