LFSC 591 Entomology II: INSECT IDENTIFICATION
June 22-26, 2009
3 graduate credits
Entomology II: Insect Identification is the follow up to Entomology I: Terrestrial and Aquatic Insects. Field biologists, land managers, students, and amateur naturalists are encouraged to participate. This graduate course covers the principles and methods of identification through the observation, collection, and preparation of insects found in local habitats. Lectures and labs cover the common insect orders and families, and their identification. Daily field trips (day and night) will expose students to live insects and methods to observe, collect, and identify them outdoors and in the lab.
The lectures will be held in VCU’s state-of-the-art Life Sciences laboratories, while the labs are conducted in the brand new VCU Rice Center over looking the James River in Charles City County. Field trips will take place on the 342-acre site surrounding the VCU Rice Center and the nearby Harrison Lake National Fish Hatchery.
What will you take home?
By the end of the week, participants will have vastly improved their ability to correctly place many common species of insects to order and family using field guides, dichotomous keys, and other useful internet resources. They will also have gained much useful information on insect natural history, as well as valuable experience with a diverse array of field methods.
The specimens gathered during the week and the rest of the summer will become the foundation for an aesthetically-pleasing, educational and scientifically-instructive insect collection that will serve as an inspiration to students in the classroom or as the core of a valuable and long-term reference collection for land managers.
Lead Instructor
Dr. Arthur Evans
E-mail: arthurevans@verizon.net
Contact us
For more information about this workshop contact Anna Jones at (804) 828-8831 or Jackie McDonnough at (804) 828-1305, or Dr. Arthur Evans.