Auriana graduated from the University of Utah with double majors in anthropology and biology. In the fall of 2026, she started a PhD program in Geography at the University of Iowa, where she continued her work in wildlife conservation research and human-wildlife interactions. You can see what she is up to now, and following along with any future updates, on her LinkedIn or Instagram profiles (linked below).
I almost didn’t think that the end of my tenure with Wasatch would ever come. I have been writing for as long as I can remember. Short fiction stories, journals, and poems… but nothing like what I...
As a bright-eyed University of Utah freshman, I lived in the farthest dorm building from the main hubs of campus. Two to three times a day for a year — in rain, sun and snow — I would walk the same...
I have heard from incredible researchers from our university and the surrounding community across the course of my personal column, “Outdoor Research at the U.” Most of those researchers have been...
In our current political and social climates, it is challenging to see areas of life where people are working together. Divisive language online and in the news can make it seem as though competing cultural...
For those seeking general enjoyment, this is one of the few instances where I do believe the 1975 movie Jaws is better than its 1974 book counterpart. The movie’s plot is more streamlined and forwent...
Every year, Kingsbury Hall, in partnership with Campus Recreation Services Outdoor Adventures, hosts three nights of film viewings from the year’s Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival. Put on by the...
Meet Toby.
Weighing in at a thick twenty-five pounds of black and white fluff, Toby is a half toy-poodle, half springer spaniel mix. To call my dog a nervous nelly and a pampered baby might be giving...
This is the second installment of a two-part article. Read about the roundup preparations in Part One.
The Start
When the Bison Roundup officially started the sun was fully up. I made a beeline for the...
On Saturday, October 25, 2025, my alarm clock went off at 5:30 a.m. This was unusual for me, but that Saturday was special. On that early October morning, I was running out the door because I was headed...
Over the course of researching my “Outdoor Research” column pieces, I’ve been able to learn from a variety of researchers based on or affiliated with The University of Utah campus. The U has no shortage...
Amidst this year’s summer films, few compelled and surprised me quite like Jurassic Park Rebirth. When first announced I was ready to complain about yet another re-boot. However, the first trailer promised...
All information was sourced from the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN Red List), an inventory of the conservation status and extinction risk of species...
Look out any window, and I bet a plant is in view. Plants account for an estimated 80% of the Earth's biomass and number approximately 8.7 billion species. Plants sustain us and sustain the species that...
Illustrations: Andrew Dunn
Sometimes, I wonder if Halloween should be in January. It seems easy to imagine that a terrifying creature might be hiding out in the dark in the dead of winter, lurking in...
Wanderlust. The word is splashed across stickers and t-shirts throughout Utah, from National Parks to downtown Salt Lake gift shops. Wasatch Magazine is no stranger to the myriad of adventures and ecosystems...
When I first saw the 2016 film Storks, I was in stitches. The movie has all sorts of comedy from Andy Samberg’s witty stork character to the ludicrously dumb Pigeon Toady. However, what had me chuckling...
The word “archaeology” is sure to conjure up images of leather hats, bull whips, lost treasure, booby traps, and daring adventures to save the free world. However, the life of an archaeologist is...
Never go caving alone. If you are interested in joining the caving community in Utah, check out a local grotto of the National Speleological Society.
A thousand years ago, it might have been snowing...
The Salt Lake Valley is teeming with various wildlife, from coyotes and foxes to moose and mountain lions. Despite this diversity, the University of Utah only has one lab dedicated to studying these animals:...
Todos Santos is a small town near the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. The quaint town is flooded by weekend tourists, immigrants from mainland...
By mid-March, spring has arrived on Antelope Island, the large State Park and oasis in the middle of the Great Salt Lake. This island is home to bison, pronghorn antelopes, coyotes, and plenty of birds....
Wintertime is beautiful. Snow on the ground shines like the sun itself, and breath comes out in lazy little clouds. Hot cocoa and coffee warm hands, and Christmas lights shine into January. But wintertime...
“It is that time of year again.” As the weather turns in those end-of-year months, I swear that phrase pops up at every turn. For the holidays, for college finals, and for when the first snow falls....
This past June I spent over a week in Centennial Valley, Montana. Almost every morning my group and I got up with the sun and headed out to bird-watch. One morning we went to a campsite farther along the valley. The stretch of area, still covered with dewy mist, was between Upper Red Rock Lake and Sheep Mountain, surrounded by aspens and furs on all sides. There, I saw two massive black birds, perched and bent over, at the very top of a tree...
