Before the expansion of the West, there was an estimate of almost 600 million beavers throughout North America. But in the early 1800s, when unregulated harvesting of beaver pelts began, […]
Draper Natural History Museum
Draper Natural History Museum staff and volunteers work with museum exhibits, programs, labwork, and conduct ecological research in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. They also keep up with and share wildlife and science news and issues related to this world-renowned, natural treasure.
Introducing the Swainson’s Hawk
It’s summer, and you think you may have heard the scream of a Red-tailed Hawk. You look up, and see a bird with a contrasting two-toned underside consisting of dark […]
Museum Minute: Skulls of Wolves Can Tell A Story
Between 1995 and 1997, 41 wolves from Canada and Northwest Montana were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. Twenty years have passed and the population has grown close to 400 in […]
Museum Minute: The Black Footed Ferret Success Story
The black footed ferret is a fierce but tiny predator. They are typically under three pounds and 90 percent of their diet is comprised of prairie dogs, which are usually […]
Owls in Native American Cultures
We humans love owls. Why not? With their flat faces and forward facing eyes they look more like us than any other bird. It is only the owls at our […]
Museum Minute: The Bighorn Rams of Christmas Eve 2000
It’s Christmas Eve 2000. The curator of the Draper Museum of Natural History, Dr. Charles Preston and his wife were driving along the North Fork corridor when they spotted a […]
