Take a virtual tour of the MSU Bug House

Amanda Lorenz-Reaves<lorenzam@msu.edu> -

You can still learn about and experience insects and other arthropods at the MSU Bug House with our two-part video tour.

Bug House
Photo by Amanda Lorenz, MSU

In a normal year at the Michigan State University Bug House, a school child would learn why cockroaches hiss, an MSU student would hold a tarantula, and a parent would photograph their 4-year-old with a beetle. For over 20 years, the Bug House has provided MSU and the surrounding community a unique venue to learn about and experience insects and other arthropods. 

“The Bug House is designed for school classes and the general public to visit in-person, to learn and see first-hand our many displays of insects as well as the opportunity to see, touch or hold our live arthropods,” said Gary Parsons, director of the Bug House. “We want our visitors to gain an appreciation and understanding of the biodiversity and important roles insects perform in our ecosystems. It also provides our student guides the experience of passing on the entomological knowledge they have learned and how to practice public outreach.”

“At the Bug House, I am able to teach visitors about insects through hands-on activities, which often leads to them changing their minds about the creatures that we all depend on,” said Osten Eschedor, an entomology junior and Bug House student guide.

Sadly, those experiences have been impossible this year, as the COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated the cancellation of all in-person events. However, after months of not being able to have visitors in the Bug House, the Bug House is now coming to visitors in the form of a two-part video tour. The videos are appropriate for all ages, either just for fun or as part of a lesson.

The first video focuses on the display room of the Bug House, showcasing hundreds of beautiful arthropod specimens from Michigan and around the world. The second video is focused on the live room of the Bug House and introduces several of the live residents including the blue beetles, hissing cockroaches and Goldie the tarantula.

The Bug House has more videos in the works that’ll be available on our Bug House YouTube channel, as well as virtual events planned, including Darwin Discovery Day in February and the MSU Science Festival in April. You can learn more about the Bug House by visiting www.bughouse.msu.edu.

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