Monte L. Bean Life Science Museum

What an awesome place to take the kids! They have a little bit of every species here. I really like the variety. The bird collection is my favorite… you can tell that a great job was done at preserving the birds. The best part is… its FREE!

After being closed for renovations the Monte L. Bean museum is open again, and it is spectacular!
They could easily charge a hefty admission fee for this museum (it is that cool!), but they don’t. It’s still free.
I marveled at this fact as I walked around. And I heard many other patrons comment on it, as well. It’s so hard to believe a place like this, in this day-​and-​age is free!
Anyway, as you walk up you can look in the windows & see animals like: a polar bear, & big-​horned sheep.
The museum itself is so light & airy! The lobby has not one, but two giraffes on display!
Around every corner, & up every staircase; you will be delighted. They’ve done wonders with the displays. Everything looks so authentic. I thought everything was really cool, & not at all creepy.
In the back corner of the museum they have a play area for kids, that my children adored!
I would come back in a heartbeat!

Ye gads!!!
So I chaperoned my oldest daughter’s 3^rd grade field trip to the Monte L. Bean Life History Museum a few years ago. Thought I was going to be sick to my stomach!
I haven’t had much occasion to spend time on the BYU campus. My parents both attended. My grandfather retired from the «physical plant» (HVAC). I spent two months in the dead of winter 1984 – 85 at the adjacent Missionary Training Center. I’ve driven through campus countless times but had never even been to their «creamery.»
Then I spent an hour at this macabre monument to all things wrong with man’s dominion over nature!
As near as I can tell, well-​heeled Mormons used to travel to Africa on safari and bring home countless mounts. By mounts I mean taxidermied animals of all shapes and sizes. These prominent men later die and their children scratch their heads when faced with what to do with Dad’s water buffalo or grampa’s rhinoceros head. The only option for the heirs is to take a generous tax break and gift it to the church by way of the Bean Museum. I’m speculating…
I’ve never seen as much taxidermy in my life. Every nook, cranny, crack and crevice is covered with birds, reptiles, mammals, primates, great apes, pachyderms, giraffes, zebras, birds, etc. I’m not a card carrying member of PETA but this place makes me want to be!
It’s overwhelming and not in a good way. My little 8-​year-​old even remarked how morbid it all seemed. They call it a life science museum but there’s nothing alive about this place whatsoever. It really should be turned into the world’s largest showcase of taxidermy and the school could start a college on the taxidermy arts. It’s been 8 years and I’m still disturbed by that afternoon.
Honestly, this place is more of a testament to excess and exploitation than anything else. The only thing more embarrassing about this place is the pride BYU must feel in calling it their own. There’s nothing majestic about these magnificent creations stuffed and mounted on a board or stick in a musty two storey building on the BYU campus.