Schools

13 Jan 09

Children dressed as bugs at last year's Bug Quest event

More than 40 primary schools across Oxfordshire are helping experts at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History find out which creepy crawlies share our habitats as Bug Quest returns this month.

Schools taking part in the Bug Quest will be sent three sticky bug traps in a bid to discover which bugs make their homes in Oxfordshire schools. Since the project began, experts at the University Museum have identified over 60 different species at the county's schools, including spitting spiders, weevils, fungus gnats, carpet beetles, and booklice.

Trap one will be used to find out which bugs share office space with the head teacher; the second trap will catch creatures lurking in non-inhabited areas, such as a store room or utility room; and the third trap will show which insects reside in a busy spot such as an assembly area. Every month, three replacement traps will be sent out.

This year students, in Year 5 and 6, will be placing the traps, retrieving them, identifying and counting the insects and entering the numbers into an Excel spreadsheet. There will be an accompanying website which will contain a common insect identification chart, a downloadable spreadsheet, and a monthly bar chart compiled using the insect data from all the participating schools.

According to Chris Jarvis, the Education Officer at the University Museum, Bug Quest gives children a chance to take part in a long term project involving real science that encourages them to understand both the 'How?' and 'Why?' of science. Throughout the project the children are involved in data handling and presentation, identification and classification using keys and reference books and touch on aspects of insect behaviour, ecology and the ethics of collection.

Chris Jarvis said: ‘We hope to raise the children’s awareness of the natural world directly around them on a personal level and give them the skills to study it further. At a time when the planet needs more investment in the assessment of biodiversity, with factors such as global warming and over development that affect it, hopefully we are encouraging the skills and interest needed for the next generation of natural scientists.

‘Another important aspect is helping children to understand just how important insects are to their everyday existence and getting them over the 'Yuck!' factor. By handing and closely observing insects we hope children will be more likely to say 'Wow!' and watch the life around them with more interest and enjoyment, than ape those around them by saying 'Yuck!' and distancing themselves from it. Finally, they come to understand more about the role of museums – less as a ‘big room full of dead stuff’ and more about vital parts of society where scientists work to help us understand the world.’

The website will also identify ‘bug of the month’, ‘buggiest location’ and put up any interesting facts and pictures relevant to the project. The project will last six months and at the close, participating schools will be invited to bring up to ten pupils to the Museum for a reception in July, which will include prizes, a talk, and a nature trail.