Do Insects Matter to People?

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- Most people interface with insects because we think of many of them as pests, but there's also a lot of benefits to having insects and a lot of beneficial ways to interface with them.

So for example, many native bees and butterflies and moths and even flies are pollinators and pollinate our crops and other plants that are just out in the world.

We also can interface with them through things like fly fishing.

So knowing what aquatic insects are hatching out and developing your flies to mimic those aquatic insects can help fishermen go out and catch the fish they want to catch.

- I don't know many people that don't like honey.

And if you observe a honeybee hive and see the activity of that animal in nature, it will stimulate a lot of people to learn more about insects.

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So our pollinators are extremely valuable and many of these insects are also good eating.

I have seven books in my library of insect cuisine.

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- One of the really important ways that insects are important for science and medicine and other related fields is through their use as model organisms.

So the classic example is the laboratory fruit fly, drosophila melanogaster.

We've really started to pick apart its genetics down to the gene level, and knowing what genes do what in drosophila, some of those genes do similar things in other animals, including humans, and so being able to breed millions of fruit flies and really pick them apart as a model organism has led to medical breakthroughs for humans.

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- Of the wildlife artists that I have known, many of them use insects in their art, and it's a way to express their talents and also to educate people on the variety of insects that we have.

I work as a trustee with the Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art in Millersburg, and we have a youth art contest where students of grades 1-12 will enter that contest.

And many of those examples are of insects.

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- Knowing what kind of insect you're dealing with or looking at can be very important.

I get a lot of requests for, "What is this insect and how do I kill it?" And it's not a pest insect, it's just something that you can ignore because it's not doing damage to your trees or to your house.

And so knowing what you're looking at is really important.

So before you go spraying everything that you see with pesticides, try to get it identified first because you may not need that pesticide application, or you may be able to use a better way to control it if it is something that needs to be controlled; some kind of cultural method like planting your trees differently or making sure they're watered and healthy.

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- Well, my advice to parents is get out of the house, take your kids on a nature walk, show them nature firsthand.

Get some interesting insect guides, and have them learn about all the different types of insects.

Learn which are hazardous, which are fun to have around as quote, pets, and really become more acquainted with what's out there in our beautiful lands.

- Kids follow their parents' leads, so if you want your kids to be excited about nature and about insects, then you need to be excited about it too.

You need to show that excitement.

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