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West Hills Middle School camper Kolby Dickerson holds a cockroach brought into the classroom by the Rose Pest Solutions entomologists. |
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Entomologist Gene White leads camper Sarah Kadans into tall grass looking for insects. |
HOMETOWNlife.com
By Jay M. Grossman
• ECCENTRIC STAFF WRITER • July 18, 2010
Bugs: Some people squish them, others think they're cool.
Mark Sheperdigian, a trained entomologist from Rose Pest Solutions, falls firmly in the second camp.
“Most insects are good,” he said. “Most insects don't bite and most are fun. Only a few become pests.”
Cockroaches, flies and beetles were the star attraction at the 3-B's Camp Mini Bug Rodeo that Sheperdigian and fellow entomologist Gene White recently held for 19 local campers at West Hills Middle School. Students learned about the insect world and how to distinguish the good ones from the bad ones. They finished the day with an old-fashioned bug hunt where campers could collect their own specimens.
“If they come away thinking this is neat, that would be cool,” Sheperdigian said. “We're trying to promote science — this is one way to that and have a little fun.”
As for the recent outbreak of bed bugs across the country, Sheperdigian said it's a true mystery.
“As an entomologist, I have to say one of the most amazing occurrences is the re-emergence of bed bugs from virtual obscurity. There really is no explanation. Some people have their own theories for why they came back — but there's nothing empirical to back up those theories. The truth is, we don't know why they went away and we don't know why they came back.”
And yes, bed bugs are the bad insects. Feel free to squish them.
jgrossman@hometownlife.com (586) 826-7030
