Bug Spray is a new biweekly series by Dr. Norman Johnson, former Director of the Triplehorn Insect Collection at Ohio State. The subject is all insects and insect collection: history, biology, and fascination with the tiny creatures that surround us. Check out the first post and follow for more.

Bug Spray: the first dose

This is the official start date for short contributions from yours truly, now Professor Emeritus and retired Director of the Triplehorn Insect Collection. My goals are to promote the collection and…

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Please read, share & support local collections. 🦋🪲🐝🐜🐞🪰🐛🪳🕷️🦗 IUCN Species Survival Commission position statement on the vital role of biological collections in the conservation of biodiversity.

Check it out Rosey Frazer's blog post for some insight on butterfly curation. #museum

Collaborative Curation

Insect curation is an ongoing, collaborative process with many steps. One of the projects I’ve been working on recently, a group of Lycaenid butterflies, had specimens at several different points i…

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Check out the new blog post by Cole Knaus on the ongoing research to save the rusty-patched bumble bee.

From the Collection to Conservation: Using Bumble Bee Specimens to Find Potential Reintroduction Sites for an Endangered Species

Bumble bees are important pollinators of native plants and several crops like blueberries and tomatoes. Beyond their ecological importance, I would argue they garner intrinsic value for their fuzzy…

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Check out the new blog post by Adelaine Muth, an Art Graduate student at Ohio State University who spent a few weeks on an internship at the Triplerhorn Insect Collection. Adelaine was funded by a Career Accelerator Grant. "The only stillness in the collection is the specimen" go.osu.edu/adelaine

The only stillness in the collection is the specimen

When I reached out to Dr. Musetti about a possible internship at the Triplehorn Insect Collection over the summer I was looking to understand how the system of a collection works. I am going into m…

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Shipping holotype specimens. No matter how many times I do this it’s always a bit nerve wracking. 😬 Today: preparing 33 HTs of recently described species + 5 old types. Soon these will be going your way @juanitarodriguez.bsky.social

my paper on pogonomyrmex harvester ant biogeography with bob johnson and @corriemoreau.bsky.social came out today! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/MEB3T9...

Check it out! "Curation in Practice: Processing the Sommer Lepidoptera Collection at OSU" u.osu.edu/pinningblock...

Curation in Practice: Processing the Sommer Lepidoptera Collection at OSU

Some of my earliest memories revolve around bugs, from flipping rocks to find isopods to finding butterflies on flowers. When I came to OSU as a PhD student in EEOB, I was passionate about working …

u.osu.edu

"Well-cared-for collections like this are valuable additions to museums, expanding our documentation of biodiversity." says Lily Kelleher in her post about the curation of the Sommer Lepidoptera collection at the #TriplehornInsectCollection go.osu.edu/sommerleps

Curation in Practice: Processing the Sommer Lepidoptera Collection at OSU

Some of my earliest memories revolve around bugs, from flipping rocks to find isopods to finding butterflies on flowers. When I came to OSU as a PhD student in EEOB, I was passionate about working …

go.osu.edu

Check out the latest post on the Triplehorn Insect Collection’s Pinning Block blog. #curation #museums #insects #collections #entomology

Behind Every Beetle: The Complete Story of Cerambycidae Curation

As I approach the end of my second year as a Curatorial Assistant at the Triplehorn Insect Collection, I wanted to reflect on the experience of the largest and most comprehensive assignment I have …

u.osu.edu

🌱 Help secure the future of the Biodiversity Heritage Library! 🙏 Your donation will keep biodiversity knowledge open, connected, and growing, and fund the dedicated staff who make it all possible. 📖 👩‍💻 🌱 🌏 🧪 🔗 Donate: ancrywkv.donorsupport.co/page/BHLDona... #BHLTransition #ILoveBHL

We spent the past 2 months hunting for nymphs of the spotted lanternfly in the garden. Found & removed hundreds. Now adults are emerging. 😭

"You’re punching a generation-size hole, maybe a multigenerational hole, in the scientific and technical workforce. You don’t just Cryovac these people and pull them out when the money comes back. People are going to move on.” www.scientificamerican.com/article/prop...

This Budget Plan Would Devastate U.S. Space Science

Scientists are rallying to reverse ruinous proposed cuts to both NASA and the National Science Foundation

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"If the NSF budget were to be enacted as is, it “would spell the end of any pretence that the US leads the world in science and technology, handing that position to China”, says Neal Lane, who directed the agency under Democratic former president Bill Clinton." By @dangaristo.bsky.social 🧪

Trump moves to slash NSF: why are the proposed budget cuts so big?

Major US science funder could lose more than half its budget — and researchers are reeling.

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The Weather & climate livestream continues. Amazing talks by gifted & dedicated scientists . Check it out! Support them! @wclivestream.bsky.social

Biodiversity Heritage Library transition update! blog.biodiversitylibrary.org/2025/05/tran... #BHL

BHL Transition Update #1

Leadership, Fiscal Sponsorship, and Hosting Opportunities In April 2025, the Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL) released a public statement announcing that the Smithsonian Institution, our adminis…

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@Follow Weather & Climate Livestream here: wclivestream.bsky.social

The Weather & Climate Livestream (@wclivestream.bsky.social)

From May 28th to June 1st, join meteorologists and climate scientists from across the US for a 💯-hour livestream! We will share our science and show why America's forecasts are worth saving. [Photo: N...

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The link in the OP will no longer work, so here is a replacement which should keep working throughout the livestream: wclivestream.com/watch

Tune into the 💯 hour Weather & Climate Livestream, brought to you by US meteorologists and climate scientists whose research is at risk due to proposed budget cuts. Learn about the federally funded science that makes weather forecasts and climate predictions possible! www.youtube.com/live/CcWR6Cd...

Live from NASA GISS, kicking-off the Weather and Climate 100-hour livestream

YouTube video by The Weather & Climate Livestream

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Check it out!! *The weather & climate 100 hr livestream*!! Going on right now!! Scientists are talking about the importance of weather forecast to our daily life. 87 hours to go. Please support our colleagues, share widely. #NOAA www.youtube.com/@wclivestrea...

@siobhanleachman.bsky.social Hello!! I was looking for you! 🫂🥳

Tomorrow is International Museum Day. But really, museum day is everyday. Let’s continue to celebrate & advocate for our #museums & #libraries #museumdayiseveryday

International Museum Day - International Council of Museums

Each year since 1977, ICOM has organised International Museum Day, which represents a unique moment for the international museum community.

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First word at opening this drawer was “whoa!” 😮💓 Neobarrettia spinosa (Caudell, 1907), Greater Arid-land Katydids. The highlighted specimens are from Texas.

Deadline May 19!!! Add your comments to gov proposed changes in the ESA aka “Rescinding the Definition of Harm under the Endangered Species Act”.

Hello #invertefest, here is a valentine for the beautiful paper wasps I got to know when I still lived in California. They were very polite about our shared porch and never tried to come inside, never acted aggressive towards me. Sadly I think they were an invasive type, but I was fond of them.

Join the fun that’s #Invertfest ! We’re no artists around here, but we use stencils, recycled materials, & creativity to spread awareness & share our love & appreciation for #insects These gift bags have sparked so many interesting conversations.

What are your favorite invertebrate books? Here are a few of my favorite insect books (will post marine invert books later) that is by no means comprehensive because I've got shelves of them. But there's always room for more, so let's see your favorites! Nonfiction AND fiction. #InverteFest

Exciting #Invertfest 2025!!

Saimi Hanma ⚔️ サイミ@saimihanma.bsky.social · last yr.

It's officially #InverteFest in the west! We want to see your bugs! Get outside for an invertebrate scavenger hunt. Introduce us to the spider in your basement. Paint a polychaete worm. Write a song about a giant isopod. Whatever you do, we want you to share it with us using #InverteFest

You may have noticed it's #Invertefest! I draw a lot of invertebrates. I don't have a new one for you today, but one of my neighbors has started a tiny parking lot garden, and perhaps tomorrow I will go look for bugs to draw in it. #SciArt