I Am No Longer A Bug Murderer

I wonder how many bugs get killed daily. If you think about it, it is really sad when humans die in our life. We celebrate the life they lived and hold a big ceremony for their burial, but poor bugs don't really get anything but a big shoe crushing them. I was thinking about how dirty my windshield was when I drove to atlanta a couple of weeks ago. That is only a two and a half hour trip at most, and we are in the middle of January. I realize that all of that gunk on my windshield is squished up and splattered bug guts from the ride. Flying bugs were helplessly crossing the road when my car sped by and took their life right in that instant! To me, the thought of how many bugs die each day is insane. Especially before this class, I did not like bugs at all, but having taken this class it got me into thinking about how many bugs we kill each and every day. I know that they do not have the brains by any means that humans do. They do not know a whole lot about what is going on, and their life is short anyways but still! Realizing this, I might not be as inclined to kill every bug that I see anymore. Maybe instead I can pick them up and put them where they belong outside, or just leave them alone. I have realized in taking this class that they really do not do much harm to me, and although some of them are pests, a lot of bugs do great things for our environment. From now on I will try my best not to be a bug murderer, I will just let them live. As stupid as this sounds, I think I will feel like a better person!

http://www.google.com/search?q=bugs+on+windshields&client=safari&rls=en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=lz3rUv_xE-fWyQGR54DwCg&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1082&bih=575#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=OTj7mg4bkn9fxM%253A%3BcA0LprpSeJK4aM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwindshieldwasher.files.wordpress.com%252F2013%252F01%252Flovebugs.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwindshieldwasher.wordpress.com%252F2013%252F01%252F29%252Ftruckers-remove-windshield-bugs-while-driving-push-button-remote%252F%3B1600%3B1163

Bees Can Change Your Social Status

I think one of the most frustrating things about bugs is that bees can sting you. I really just do not enjoy bees at all, and the fact that they have the ability to sting people is so annoying. I do have some really great and horrifying memories as a kid playing in my yard though. I remember we would make a game out of it with the neighborhood kids. It was almost like a freeze tag kind of game, except more dangerous because you could actually be stung by a bee. If any of us saw a bee we would immediately say FREEZE ITS A BEE, and we would all stand extremely still and not make a sound. It was funny because I remember the positions we were stuck in seemed really hilarious to me as a kid. The fact that we wouldn't move because of one flying insect seems ridiculous, but I was not about to be the kid that gets stung by the bee! I was stung by so many as a child, and I can remember many occasions. One day I was playing on my swing set in my yard with a bunch of kids. We were all racing for the swings, so without hesitation I ran as fast as I could to the nearest swing and hopped on. Little did I know, there was a bee sitting right on the seat. It was summertime, so I was in by bathing suit because we had been running through the sprinklers earlier that day. That stupid bee stung me so bad on my butt, and I remember how embarrassed I was to this day. I screamed and held on to my right butt cheek, and ran as fast as I could to find my mom in my house. All the kids were laughing about the situation. Now that I look back on this funny instance I laugh, but holy cow I hate bees. They made me feel like I was the least cool kid on the planet that day. I know that they do some good for our environment, but for my social status they really did some damaging back in the day!

Here is a beautiful picture of a honey bee just to brighten up everyones day after reading my mean story about the fact that I do not like bees! 

http://www.google.com/search?q=bees&client=safari&rls=en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=ADvrUvG2LuSdyQHN2YCoDQ&ved=0CAoQ_AUoAg&biw=1082&bih=575#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=FpnXYqL3LuFM7M%253A%3B5HWqIThyWN8v-M%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fecohoneybees.com%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252Fhoney-bee.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fecohoneybees.com%252Fhoney-bees%252F%3B1200%3B970

Ruffner Mountain

I really enjoyed my experience when I walked through Ruffner Mountain. It was really fun! I learned a lot about the mountain and I got to do things that I never thought I would get the opportunity to do. I learned that a branch that had fallen was not merely just a branch, it had a story to it. Dr. Van Zandt taught us about how there was most likely a beetle that had laid its eggs inside of the branch, and chewed the branch off of the tree. This story was very interesting to me because I realized that although it looked like an ordinary branch of leaves, there was actually a long story behind it. It was really cool to realize that nature is not just placed for no reason, but rather most of it has developed due to a long story. Bugs are a very important part of nature, and throughout this class this is something that I have learned. My favorite part of climbing Ruffner Mountain was when I got the opportunity to go into a cave. I have never been in a cave before, so this was an extremely cool experience for me. It was cool to have flash lights and be able to see the beauty of the way that the cave was constructed. I did not get the chance to find many bugs down there, but it was still a learning experience for me. Another thing about Ruffner that I thought was really cool was when we got to look at the quarry. I have not climbed many mountains before, so this was one of the first quarries that I have seen. I loved seeing the beautiful view. It made me think about how wonderful hiking could be, and that I should do it more often. So all in all, my experience at Ruffner Mountain was a very positive one, and I can not wait to hike more mountains and learn about nature in the future! 

http://www.google.com/search?q=ruffner+mountain&client=safari&rls=en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=prjpUtq5D4vrkQeK24HACQ&ved=0CAoQ_AUoAg&biw=1155&bih=633#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=ZVpa0ZCFdm7YYM%253A%3BPipF-Y-UZMiRjM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fmedia-cdn.tripadvisor.com%252Fmedia%252Fphoto-s%252F01%252F25%252Fd4%252Fdc%252Fhawks-view-at-ruffner.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.tripadvisor.com%252FAttraction_Review-g30375-d279377-Reviews-Ruffner_Mountain_Nature_Center-Birmingham_Alabama.html%3B336%3B450

Sleep Tight, Don't Let The Bed Bugs Bite!

For my entire life, I have always had this fear of bugs, but the biggest fear that I have with them is holy cow are they in my bed at night? During this class I learned that bedbugs are in fact a thing, and they are very common. When I was younger and my parents would say to me “ sleep tight don’t let the bed bugs bite!” I always had this image of all of these nasty large bugs crawling all over my legs and biting me when they would say that. It haunted me for life. To this day, bedbugs scare me! Obviously I can not be too afraid of them and let them affect my life much anymore, because there really is nothing that we can do about them. We can clean our sheets and bedding as much as possible, but the truth is bedbugs will most likely still be existent. During this course when I started to realize this, I became a little less afraid of them. All they can do to me is bite me in the night, and they are so small that they are extremely hard to see. They still freak me out, but they do not scare me nearly as much as they used to. 

I am not sure if I have ever been bit by a bedbug, but I am sure that I have, for I have woken up with itchy red bug bites before not knowing how or where I got them from. In the future, just because that dumb bedtime phrase freaked me out so much and scarred me for life, I will not be telling that saying to my children. I do not want my kids to ever have that terrible image in their head of these nasty bugs! There are just some things that kids do not need to know about, and these are definitely one of them! 

http://www.google.com/search?q=bedbugs&client=safari&rls=en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=g7bpUtC2BqSMyAHAl4DoDA&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1155&bih=633#facrc=_&imgdii=MDyD5YikC8YxuM%3A%3BZTUQL9wTIVOJWM%3BMDyD5YikC8YxuM%3A&imgrc=MDyD5YikC8YxuM%253A%3B8uUjRsTajeKZmM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fchipptips.com%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2014%252F01%252Fbed-bug1.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fchipptips.com%252Fbedbugs%252F%3B2200%3B1500

Final Thoughts

At the beginning of this class I really did not like bugs. I would always squish them if I found them, especially the silverfish that I saw in my shower when I lived at home. Bugs used to gross me out and scare me at the same time. The first day of class when Dr. Van Zandt brought out the Madagascar hissing cockroach it really scared me. I was so afraid of them because of their size and the noise that they would make. Then, he began telling us facts about them, and the more that I learned about them the less scared I was. I am pretty sure I was the only person in the class that did not hold one, but still my fear was eased the more that I learned about them. They were not as scary as I initially thought. They were very slow, and they could not harm you at all which made me not as scared. Since then, I have held many bugs and leaned a ton about the different types. It was so fun to search for bugs and not be nearly as afraid as I was when this class started out. I have really enjoyed learning all of this new information about bugs because it has helped me to realize they are actually really cool, and not as disgusting. For some reason the more I know about them the less they scare and gross me out. I am extremely glad I got the chance to take this class because it has really made me grow and learn to cope with my fear. I have had so much fun, and I can not wait to go out this summer and not be so afraid of bugs!

Post 5 Eating bugs?!?

I have always been repulsed at insects ever since I was a child. They just flat out gross me out. This class has helped me conquer my fear a ton, but I still cringe when I see a big bug that moves faster than I can watch it. When all of the cicadas came out and there was an over abundance of them along with their shells all over the streets I was absolutely terrified.

These bugs scarred me over that summer. I saw people eating them on the news and it disgusted me. I could not believe people were crying them up and eating them as meals AND enjoying it! It freaked me out, and ever since then the thought of eating bugs has been something I typically do not ever consider. Reading about it in the article grossed me out even more, although it made it seem more normal. The article talked about how much other countries eat bugs, and the fact that some people even buy them in movie theaters. Although I am grossed out, the fact that this became more normal sounding helped me to be not so afraid. Who knows, maybe I will eventually try eating some form of a bug in the future. (On my own intentions.)

On another note, hearing about the fact that I consume thousands of insects per year made me freak out a ton. I know that there was some, but hearing thousands really makes me grossed out. I just do not even want to think about how that happens! I tend to sleep with my mouth open, so in the future I will try and close my mouth when I sleep.

Lastly, if I had to switch over to insects as my main source of portion I'm sure that I would be able to do it eventually. I feel like if I tried hard to get used to it, and everyone else was doing it and seemed like they were okay, I would be able to do this. I would only be able to if there were literally no other options though!

Chapter 10

Chapter 13

Chapter 12

Chapter 11

Interesting Bugs

I truly enjoyed the book and all of the interesting chapters about the different types of bugs. My favorite chapter in the book was the one about fireflies. The reason this specific chapter was my favorite out of the book is because I absolutely am fascinated with fireflies. They make me so interested in how they glow and flash their beautiful light out to the whole world. As a child I loved catching them in the summertime and putting them in a jar, although they would die not too long after. I loved the glow that they gave off, and I liked using my jar as a lamp. These were definitely the most fun bugs as a child to find and play with. Me and my cousins would see who could catch the most and make a fun game out of it. The reason that I truly favorite the fireflies is because when I go camping every year for the summer, I go to the smoky mountains in early June when they all flash their lights in unison. It's probably one of the most amazing things that I have ever seen in my life. They make beautiful colors and light up the entire forest and pathways. You can literally walk through the woods being lead by the fireflies. Something I learned from the book about fireflies is that they are not actually flies, they are actually a type of beetle. Thinking about the way they actually look and noticing their exterior they do in fact look like beetles. I just never have thought of them in that way because I typically do not like beetles very much. Something I learned searching online is that there are about 2000 firefly species, and they typically only live in warm environments. Also I learned about how they glow "the insects take in oxygen and, inside special cells, combine it with a substance called luciferin to produce light with almost no heat." All in all, fireflies fascinate me and I think that no matter what they will always be my favorite insect!


animals.nationalgeographic.com

Decapitated Cockroaches

As a child I had the biggest fear of cockroaches, and I still do today. I would ask my parents tons of questions about them, and most of the time they would tell me they did not know the answers to them. One of my questions that I had is whether or not they are able to live when their decapitated.Basically, in my little mind I wondered if I ripped their heads off if they would still be able to run around or not. I had heard many different answers all telling me that yes they could live with their heads decapitated. I was extremely disturbed and even more afraid of them. I would imagine them running around without heads all over the place, and this scared the living daylights out of me. It still scares me thinking about it even today. During my read of the book, The Earwig's Tail, one of the chapters explains the mythology of this statement. Do cockroaches survive without their heads, and if so for how long? The book explains, "conviction that headless cockroaches of unspecified taxonomic identity can in fact survive for some period of time is persistent"(54). So through this chapter I realized my fear was in fact true, and this made it extremely hard for me to believe. I really do not like the fact that cockroaches can live without their heads! So my next question after learning this was for how long? My book explained that "sites specify nine days, although there are sites that specify one weed, two weeks, or several weeks"(55). So learning about all of this was really new news to me, but also very interesting. I could not believe this myth was in fact true, and it really creeped me out. On one website it stated "so without the brain, the body can still function in terms of very simple reactions," Tipping says. "They could stand, react to touch and move." This agreed with everything that I read in the book, but it also clarifies for me that they are limited to what they can do with a decapitated head. All in all this specific chapter in the book made me even more afraid of cockroaches! 

If I was a bug surviving through the cold winter, based on the things I have learned recently in class I would definitely do super cooling. I would find a nice spot where I would not be disturbed, and I would super cool in order to protect myself from the terribly cold weather. I feel like this is the best way to survive the cold in most cases for bugs. If it was the right timing though, I would also want to be in my pupae phase of life. This would also be very helpful through the cold, rather than in the phase of adulthood. It would be hard to survive those cold temperatures if I was out and moving around in my adult phase. These are the two things I would do if I were a bug surviving through the winter. 

Under the Microscope and CSI

Today I searched for bugs and had a really enjoyable experience. I really liked learning about the different kinds of ways to search for bugs in the winter. I learned through the episode that we watched today that there are many ways to use bugs in order to help society. In the CSI, I learned that bugs can help us to determine when a human dies, and how much time has passed since they died. This was very interesting to me, although I have learned about it prior to today. I did not know that bugs could be so helpful in these certain circumstances, and it made me realize that they are more interesting than scary. Throughout class, holding the australian cockroaches made me a lot less scared of cockroaches. Cockroaches are one of my biggest fears, and after observing them in class I felt a lot more comfortable with bugs in general. I did not get the chance to hold one, but I am so glad that I got the chance to see them in person and understand that they can not harm me in any way. All that they would do is hiss. When I realized all they would do is walk slowly, my fear of their size and looks grew smaller. I really enjoyed the experience I had with them, although I would have never said that forty eight hours ago. Another thing that I have truly enjoyed recently is looking at the bugs under the microscope. It can be very scary seeing them that closely, but it has helped me find a beauty about them that I have never even seen before. They do not seem as scary, but rather beautiful, especially the moths. The way these bugs are formed and molded is fascinating to me. I really enjoy this class, and I can not wait to see how much more I get to learn and appreciate about bugs.

Throughout my life I have never truly enjoyed looking at, or searching for bugs. When I was a child, one of my younger brothers put a worm in my hair and it scarred me horribly. I do not like insects, they do not mesh well with me. Every time I see a cockroach I either run away from it or I will spray it with that stuff spray that kills them instantly. Freshman year took my hatred for cockroaches to a whole new level. I literally would scream as loud as I could when I would see one running across the hall of my dorm. One instance that really fueled my hate fire for cockroaches is when the janitors were fixing our water fountain in our freshman dorm. They took out the fountain which left a gaping, dark hole in the wall. Right at that moment when I decided to walk down the hallway that day, at least ten cockroaches crawled out of the wall. It was probably one of the most scary things that has ever happened to me in my mind. I ran to my room and slammed my door shut. I put a towel under the door so none could crawl into my room, and I called all of my friends on the hall and told them to do the same. 

I am not an easily scared person, but cockroaches really seem to bother me more than any other living creature. I believe it is because I do not know very much about them though. I feel like learning about them could help ease my fear and give me the chance to have some kind of respect for them. I am not sure if this is possible due to how much I hate them currently, but I will try my best to learn about them with an open mind. 

I thought the bug bit video was very interesting. I liked how they made it funny while at the same time making it informative. I did not know anything about bugs before watching that video, so everything that they explained was interesting to me. I think they did a really nice job explaining in a short video the basic knowledge of bugs. I am really interested to see what this class does for not only my growth in knowledge about bugs, but also for my feelings about them. I would love to come out of this class conquering my fear, but I guess we will just have to wait and see!

adamspestcontrol.com