Entomology & Learning Sciences

Bugs are everywhere. No matter where we go, they’re right there with us. And thank goodness for that! Insects form a critical part of our world, and in this section you’ll find everything from photos of our stunning collection to the reason why it’s good to stop and watch a beetle for a while.

GET CURIOUS

Watch as Museum Member and actor Ty Burrell takes us behind the scenes in the Museum’s entomology collections and Dr. Jason Cryan hosts a conversation with Museum scientists. This adventure in Entomology will play in the video player below.

FROM THE ENTOMOLOGY COLLECTION

Our collections are brimming with bugs. Have a look at some of the most gorgeous specimens here.

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Anthocharis sara thoosa (UMNH.ent.0035362)

This Anthocharis sara thoosa (southwestern orangetip) is the oldest collected butterfly and one of the oldest specimens overall that we have in the Natural History Museum of Utah. John Sugden, a 19th-century collector, found it in 1892 in Riverside, CA. Old specimens like this butterfly can tell stories about what kinds of plants lived in a certain place, the soil condition of those plants, and what the temperature was like in the past. Despite being over 100 years old, it is in incredibly good conditions. Butterflies, if protected from temperature changes and pests the way that we care for those in our collections, can last for centuries.

Apantesis parthenice (UMNH.ent.0017876)

This Apantesis parthenice (tiger moth) is an example that museum collections are stories about species, but that they’re also a story of the biographies of the people who create them. This moth was collected by Ezra Day, a mail carrier and amateur lepidopterist, in 1940. Day collected butterflies and moths as a hobby from the 1930s to the 1970s and kept meticulous notes of his findings that researchers still use. Even though Day collected it, collections are libraries with many authors, and others are still contributing to our knowledge about it. In 2018, a visiting specialist came to the museum and saw this moth and was able to give it a specific species name, whereas before we only knew its genus. The Natural History Museum of Utah creates a hub for these kinds of relationships that spans time and space that allow science to flourish.

Raphia frater (UMNH.ent.0011290)

This Raphia frater shows how museum collections can help people create deeper relationships to specific places. A famous arachnologist, Willis Gertsch, found and pinned this moth in the Fort Douglas area in 1928, right near where the modern museum sits. Even as what was happening at would become the museum was very different than today, specimens were being collected that would one day find a home in our collections. It travelled from Gertsch’s possession, to the collections of the University of Utah’s biology department, to the old museum when it opened in 1969, to the new museum near where it was originally collected. Quite a long journey to end up almost in the same spot.

Dasymutilla gloriosa (UMNH.ent.0004523)

This Dasymutilla gloriosa is a velvet ant that shows the unique ways that insects can adapt to harsh and unforgiving environments like the Utah deserts. There are over 7,000 species of this wasp (yes, it’s a wasp) all over the world. They typically are bright orange or a scarlet color, but this specific species is a rarity with its nice, long white hairs. This is likely for temperature regulation and to keep them cool in their hot surroundings, but it could also be a way to mimic something else in its environment as a way to deter predators.

Polyphylla decemlineata (UMNH.ent.0007339)

Most beetles in the world, including this Polyphylla decemlineata (watermelon beetle), can fly. Their wings include the thin, typical-looking forewings and the hard-shelled hind wings. These two sets of wings fold intricately together, soft wing under hard, when the beetle makes its way across the ground. Despite the fact that they can fly, most beetles are not particularly fast or aerodynamic. This scarab beetle is the largest in northern Utah, and it flies almost comically slowly.

Hyalophora gloveri (UMNH.ent.0040789)

The Hyalophora gloveri (Glover’s silkmoth) is a species of large moth that used to be very common in Utah. While we have over three drawers full of this moth in our collections, they are rarely seen in modern times. The likely explanation for their disappearance is that their habitat has been tampered with beyond their ability to survive. It’s not clear what environmental factor caused this moth to disappear—it could be humans cutting down much of their habitats or spraying pesticides. If people were to try and re-release this species into the ecosystem, it is unlikely they would survive unless humans were willing to rebuild their habitat. However, it should be noted that we may just not be looking in the right places at the right times, and that this moth perhaps is still around in more remote locations in the Salt Lake Valley.

Halictidae (UMNH.ent.0005153)

This bee is a member of the halictidae (sweat bee) family. This species of bee doesn’t live in a hive, but rather nests in the ground or, less commonly, in wood. It is just one of the approximately 1,000 different kinds of bee species that live in Utah. This wide variety of bees are an incredibly important group of pollinators for the plants in the state. People can help the bees in Utah by planting native plants and flowers in their yards and reducing the amount of pesticides they use.

Stenopelmaltidae (UMNH.ent.0003994)

The Stenopelmaltidae (Jerusalem cricket) is an unusual-looking cricket that many find unsettling to look at. Their unusual look may have led to the name--the word “Jerusalem” used to be used as a mild expletive, and the first white settlers to the region used it upon seeing this cricket. Despite its appearance, it’s not dangerous to humans. It’s not venomous, but for defense it emits a foul smell and can, like all animals with a mouth, bite whatever is threatening it.

Tettigoniidae (UMNH.ent.0008009)

This Tettigoniidae (katydid) was caught in behind the building that used to house the Natural History Museum of Utah on the University of Utah’s campus. A university student named Gary Brim caught it in 1937, decades before the museum itself was established. Storing and studying these older insects in the collection helps us understand more about how our local environments have changed over time. Bug populations move and change quickly, much more so than trees or mammals, and are much easier to collect and store. By studying these populations over time in museum collections, researchers can learn many stories about the ways that environments have changed over decades or even centuries.

ENTOMOLOGY STORIES

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Behind the Scenes: What Good is a Dirty Kid?

Children - as well as adults - can benefit from coloring outside the lines and playing in the mud.

A close-up of an insect called a treehopper, with six legs, wings, a short face, and a tower-like structure jutting out above its head.

A Strange and Mysterious Insect Was Found in Museum Collections First

NHMU Director Jason Cryan discovered a new insect in museum collections, and the species wasn't seen again for 20 years.

Utah Fireflies Light Up the Night

Lightning bugs aren't a rarity in the Beehive State. They're all over.

ENTOMOLOGY VIDEOS

Entomology Frequently Asked Questions

Learning Science & Home School Tips

Insects are a great tool for inspiring curiosity in kids!

Check out a few tips on how to raise a Wild Child:

SCIENTISTS AT WORK

Entomologists embody the spirit of “gotta catch ‘em all!” See what they do in the field and lab.

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