Jurica-Suchy Nature Museum Updates

The Jurica-Suchy Nature Museum will be open all summer, and you can find our current hours or make a reservation by using the QR code below or accessing our website at ben.edu/museum.  We continue to create new exhibits and resources for visitors.  Many of these resources are highlighted below…

The Discovery Box Loan Program provides specimens and educational materials covering a wide range of species and nature topics.  This summer we are updating and adding duplicate boxes for many topics.  We are also a repository for IDNR Resource Trunks.  New boxes recently added share information on birds and insects.

Nature Rx wellness walks are offered every semester for anyone who would like to learn about and enjoy nature as we find it in the woods and areas around Lake Benedictine on the west side of campus.  Come out to enjoy a 45 minute walk, narrated by an Illinois master naturalist, and see what is in bloom or who is inhabiting our woods today!

Nature Doodlers, the museum’s own nature journaling club, meets once a month at the museum at 10:00am on the last Saturday of the month.  We have a 30-minute presentation on the monthly topic with time for discussion and practice afterwards.  Draw from subject specimens in our collections, or take it outside on campus.  A beginner’s nature journaling kit is free for all newcomers, but feel free to bring your own supplies.  In June we are exploring plants, leaves, and basic botany, while in July we will be observing insects, arachnids and other arthropods.  Come on out to learn, observe, and record your observations.

Next weekend, the museum director and volunteers will be out at the Morton Arboretum’s annual Nature Play for All Weekend.  Bring your family out to hike and explore seeds, pond life, art, and more in the Arboretum’s Children’s Garden.

There will be more events coming throughout the year including our annual Life In The Pond turtle day in September and Creepy Critters – a Halloween wildlife celebration in October.  More changes are also coming to our website, Discover-Nature.org with additional resource pages and museum information.  You can sign up for our bi-monthly blog at https://discover-nature.org/