IN THE FIELD
Museums have used flesh-eating dermestid beetles for preserving skeletons since the late 19th century.
F
inding Scott Hexum’s office in the Veterinary Science and Biology Building is an adventure. Not only is Room 210 nowhere near Room 209, but visitors need to enter what looks like a storage room before descending down a small number of stairs to get there. And upon arrival, you are greeted not by a usual university office, but bones. Most are skulls, but femurs, teeth, and other parts can also be found, and they come from dogs, cows, sheep, turtles, a great-horned owl, chameleons, a caiman, a capybara, and more. There is even a hammerhead shark skull. This lair of bones is the sort of space that might terrify some children while delighting others. However, Hexum himself is all delight, no terror. “My life has been kind of a series of mostly happy accidents,” said Hexum as he explained how he became an anatomy technician at Utah State University. “I don’t always plan things far in advance.” Hexum did not set out to work at a university. However, after working on and off again as a veterinary technician in Eugene,
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Winter 2022
Oregon, he found himself enjoying lab work and training other technicians on the job. That interest led to a job as an anatomy preparator at the University of Illinois, where he created and maintained specimens for use by veterinary students. Eventually, he became an instructor as well. “As a kid, I didn't intend to be a teacher or anything like that,” Hexum said. “But once I did it, I liked it. And it was really rewarding.” While some of the bones in Hexum’s office were donated, other specimens were created by Hexum himself in Illinois. At first, he used a large boiler to prepare them, but there were significant downsides to that approach. “The flesh comes off really well,” Hexum said, “but sometimes, that damages the bone.” Teeth, nasal bones, and other delicate parts were often destroyed in the process. Hexum wanted to find a better way to make specimens, and that was when he had an idea: flesh-eating dermestid beetles.
