In 2018, Bugs on Wheels turned 12! For 12 years, Cockrell Butterfly Center and HMNS Education staff members have been driving amazing bugs all over the state of Texas and beyond to teach your kids how to love them. I started the program in 2006 with my entomological counterpart Laurie Pierrel. I would spend my […]
In the wake of hurricane Harvey, you may have heard rumors of floating fire ant rafts in the flood waters. Well, it’s not a rumor at all. The ability to bind together and form rafts to combat flooding is one of the adaptations that make the red imported fire ant such a resilient invasive pest. […]
Imagine a strange post-apocalyptic scenario in which you somehow became trapped in the Cockrell Butterfly Center alone, with no food or provisions. Pretty weird thing to imagine right? Well, it could happen! Many people come to the CBC to watch the graceful butterflies flit through the trees, but don’t actually realize that it is […]
Road trips…they’re fun, but rough on your car’s paint job! Why? Bug splatter! We are all familiar with the mess all over the front of our cars from driving, especially long distances. But, what you may not know is all of the science that can be found in all of those little dead bug bodies, […]
Valentines Day is quickly approaching. Have you thought of what to get that special someone? What better way is there to woo the woman of your dreams other than say, giving her a small dead animal wrapped in silk? Ladies, are you really looking to snag a date for Valentines Day? Tell your man that you’ll […]
Take a look at this list. You are probably thinking, “ok, someone’s shopping list, so what?“. What if I told you that most of these things are not even for human consumption, but for butterflies, reptiles, and other various insects? You’d probably think I’m crazy! Well, you’re not alone. Have you ever bought Guinness at […]
Well, it’s summer time again and millions of people will be spending lots and lots of time outdoors. They will go to the lake, they will go to the beach, they will have picnics and barbecues and luaus. All the while, they will be joined by many unwanted guests — of the arthropod kind! Many people […]
When I’m maintaining the live exhibits in the Brown Hall of Entomology in the Cockrell Butterfly Center, or giving a tour of our Insect Containment Room, one of the questions I’m most frequently asked is, “Where do the bugs come from?” It’s a very good question! Many people ask if we are able to actually collect them, and I wish […]
This year we’ve seen a rash of negative publicity about “deadly” spiders hitchhiking in fruit from Central and South America, causing arachnophobes everywhere to, well, be super paranoid! In fact, spiders have not fared well in the media at all this year. Just check out some of these headlines: Woman jumps from car after seeing spider, […]
Summer is here and the kids are out of school, so what better time to escape the heat and join us here at HMNS for some cool and educational arthropod experiences! The Cockrell Butterfly Center will be welcoming back a popular summertime program and introducing a couple of new ones which will be sure to […]
