The Worldly Antenna. of International Bug Club. Issue 6 March 2010 Number 1. International Bug Club updates! Hello Bug Club members and families!

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1 The Worldly Antenna of International Bug Club Issue 6 March 2010 Number 1 International Bug Club updates! Hello Bug Club members and families! Welcome to a new issue of The Worldly Antenna! Weʼre excited that spring has come around again (at least here in Seattle it has!) and the insects are starting to become more active mason bees are busy visiting the early-blooming native plants! What insect activity is happening in your neighborhood? In this issue youʼll find more news about butterfly conservation here in the Pacific Northwest, some fun news from Roger Williams Park Zoo Bug Club about their recent activities, and updates about a pollinator learning adventure that starts this spring and continues through spring 2011! As always, please share your bug adventures and discoveries with us at bug.club@zoo.org for us to include in an upcoming issue of The Worldly Antenna. Sincerely, Erin and Katie International Bug Club Coordinators

2 Mysteries of Metamorphosis This first quarter of 2010, WPZ Bug Club has been investigating the mysteries of metamorphosis! Weʼve explored the beautiful diversity of bug eggs and how larvae hatch from their eggs. We investigated what exactly happens when a larva moves on to the pupa stage whatʼs going on inside that pupal case? One of our favorite activities was doing the Larva Wiggle dance when the music stopped, everyone had to freeze and pupate! (Weʼll have to try Roger William Park Zoo Bug Clubʼs Mexican Jumping Bean game sounds like just as much fun as the Larva Wiggle!) Finally, we discovered the changes that take place as a butterfly, moth, beetle, fly (or other insect that goes through complete metamorphosis) ecloses from its pupal case to become an adult. There are many mysteries of metamorphosis yet to be solved! Here are some of our favorite clips showing the final stage, as bugs eclose from their pupal cases to become adults! Stalk-eyed fly Emperor gum moth Silk moth

3 Page 3 Big Hopes for a Small Species By Sue Anderson, WPZ Zookeeper/Bug Club Instructor Early last month, Woodland Park Zoo Collection Manager Erin Sullivan and I took a road trip for conservation to release captive-reared caterpillars as part of a new zoo program to recover the wild populations of the state endangered Taylorʼs checkerspot butterfly. The release into the wild may be the exciting and deeply rewarding climax to this pilot program, but the story begins with the arrival to the zoo of 510 very sleepy, fuzzy black caterpillars that were just waking up from almost six months of diapause (winter resting). The caterpillars were hatched and reared at Oregon Zoo last summer before entering the natural resting period late last summer. At Woodland Park Zoo, the larvae were set up in plastic bins where they were fed, watered, and carefully monitored for about 10 days. During their stay, the caterpillars ate like, well, very hungry caterpillars! Along with my fellow keeper Diane Abbey, we harvested nearly 100 plantago leaves per day for the growing caterpillars, which got big enough to show their fuzzy black bristles and several beautiful orange spots on each slowly growing backside! Why so much fuss over a little caterpillar? Because these ecologically valuable larvae are part of a Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife and Oregon Zoo project started in 2004 that may be the last hope of saving the Taylor's checkerspot. These native butterflies as adults are beautifully marked with black, orange and cream.

4 They are native pollinators of plants that are in imminent danger of extinction. This mediumsized butterfly, the darkest subspecies of Edith's checkerspot butterfly, was once found from south Vancouver Island through parts of Washington to Oregon's Willamette Valley. It needs open prairie grassland or oak balds to survive. Because of the loss and fragmentation of habitat, invasive nonnative plants that outcompete the paintbrush, plantain, and nectar plants needed by the checkerspot, and other lesser-known factors, the beautiful Taylor's checkerspot is considered a state endangered species here. By captive-rearing these caterpillars, their chances of surviving to pupation and emergence as adult butterflies are increased significantly. So on their last day at Woodland Park Zoo, each caterpillar was carefully packed, given a few plantago leaves for food, joined me on a little road trip and were then released into a restored area of Puget Sound prairie habitat. Throughout the year, the site will continue to be monitored while they eat, grow, and pupate, eventually emerging as the unique Taylor's checkerspot butterfly the winged hope for the future of a species! Photos (from top to bottom): Caterpillar at the release site, by Erin Sullivan; Keeper Sue Andersen works behind the scenes with the larvae, by Erin Sullivan; Close up of caterpillar at the release site, by Erin Sullivan; Taylor's checkerspot butterfly, courtesy of Oregon Zoo; Release site, by Erin Sullivan.

5 It may be cold in New England, but the Roger Williams Park Zoo Bug Club is in full swing. In January, we were curious what insects do during the winter, so went looking for signs of insects in the zoo s wetlands, wiggling to keep warm like honeybees. While exploring we found galls! After learning about what galls are, we each made our own complete with a pipe cleaner insect. To end our January Bug Club meeting we played a fun freeze game - Mexican Jumping Bean. While the music was on we jumped on our carpet squares, but when the music stopped we had to FREEZE! This was so much fun that we had to teach the Bug Club parents how to play too. In February, we explored the many different ways that insects sense their environment. After observing cicada, bee and cricket specimens we formed our own Bug Band, complete with instruments, dance moves and a song. Our dance was inspired by bees dancing to communicate with other members of the hive, and our instruments included cricket knees, cicada drums and bee buzzers. Our song was a remake of Old Macdonald Had a Farm with a new name Miss Katy was in the Woods. When the parents arrived at the end of our meeting we performed for them to rave reviews!

6 Page 6 Pollinator Live a distance learning adventure Here is some information on this yearlong exploration of pollinators: While pollinators may come in small sizes, they play a large and often undervalued role in the production of the food we eat, the health of flowering plants, and the future of wildlife. A decline in the numbers and health of pollinators over the last several years poses a significant threat to the integrity of biodiversity, to global food webs, and to human health, according to scientists. Join us for a series of live interactive webcasts, web seminars, and satellite field trips about pollinators, gardening, and conservation. Register for PollinatorLIVE and join us for a variety of distance learning adventures for your classrooms: * On May 12, 2010, join us at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET for the Insect Zoo in Your Schoolyard. Drop in at any time during this full day of webcasts to learn about pollination, pollinators, participatory science projects, the latest about monarch butterflies, and how to attract pollinators to your schoolyard. Experts will answer your students questions. * In September 2010, join us for PollinatorLIVE: Honey Bees, Native Bees, and More. Bees are the champion pollinators and need pollen and nectar from a variety of sources. That s a good thing for people since one out of three bites of food is the result of a pollinator. Learn more about our native and honeybees and join in for an update on Bee Hunt and monarch butterflies and for information about gardening for good nutrition.

7 * On April 13, 2011, join us in Austin, Texas at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, for Nature s Partners: Pollinators, Plants, and People. Meet the pollinators and their plants and learn how people benefit. PollinatorLIVE is also offering web seminars through the National Science Teachers Association for teachers and administrators: * On April 13 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. ET, learn how bees and other pollinators can help you teach science and meet standards in the field and classroom. Discover Life has several projects to understand plant- insect interactions designed so that everyone can participate and contribute to real science studies. Nature's Partners is an inquiry learning- based curriculum that can be use in the field or classroom. Additional web seminars are planned for October 2011 to learn about the benefits of outdoor education and schoolyard gardens and February 2011 to learn how schoolyard gardens and outdoor education can improve the health and achievement of students. Stay tuned for more details.