Wild Edibles Nature Experienceship - 2022 Report

Foraging for food seems to be a thing of the past, well more specifically the ancient past. On Saturday, September 24, 2022, Dr. Tom Smith showed us that foraging for food can be a fun hobby! Friends and families alike joined us on our foraging adventure around BYU campus.

We stopped off at many trees and bushes and discussed nutritional value and palatable value, in other words; is it tasty or not? Each guest was given a baggie that they could fill with wild edibles and learned how they could use it. 

We all sojourned to a campus cafe where we got to indulge in homemade chocolate, bread, jams and jellies, cookies, and cheesecake. These treats were all made with ingredients we had been able to forage, just around campus, with a few exceptions!

If I learned anything, as a starving college student, it's that I have free and delicious food all around me!

Sarah Shelley, Museum Educator

2022 Insects with Shawn Clark Report

Let’s be honest, the creepy-crawly insects that live their lives alongside us aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. But for some, those glossy exoskeletons and waving antennae spark joy, and it’s those intrepid insect enthusiasts that we found this weekend at the Bean Life Science Museum.

The Bean Museum kicked off the semester with a special insect outing, the first of their “Nature Experienceship” series, where participants have the chance to spend the morning with one of the museum experts. In this case we were joined by Dr Shawn Clark, our insect collections manager, who was quick to share his wealth of insect expertise gained from a lifetime of study.

Participants loaded into vans to take a trip up Provo Canyon to Big Springs Park, where they were supplied with catching equipment, and given free reign to catch as they pleased. When we regrouped after over an hour, specimens ranged from the littlest of flies to praying mantises to butterflies, and smiles were especially abundant. Everyone returned home with their new finds to add to their collections, and a deepened appreciation for these numerous buggy friends that surround us.

Sage, museum educator