The first annual "Bug Day" event was organized by members of Scarabs: The Bug Society in 1988. The rationale was, and still is, to bring together kids interested in bugs from around the Puget Sound area and show them they are not alone. In their everyday lives, peers who think that bugs are “yucky” may surround these kids. Another main purpose is to show everyone that bugs are cool and people who like them aren't weird.
This year's event is the 10th since the bug days became "Bug Blast” at the Burke in 1999. Returning by popular demand is bug chef David George Gordon, author of The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook, who was with us back at Bug Blast No. 1. While I find crickets and grasshoppers especially tasty, David can make even a tarantula taste good—and insects are good for you too, often with 60% protein. Try one, you'll like it; cooking demonstrations on the Burke's front lawn are at 11 am, 12:30 pm, and 2 pm.
But that's far from all! There will be vast displays of private and public collections, including specimens never shown before; live ant and honey bee colonies, stream bugs, giant zoo insects from three zoos, tarantulas, carnivorous plants and more. Activities will include compost bug digging, microscope viewing, looking at the world through compound eye glasses, and making a craft called "Bugs of the Future." Dr. Glenn Kohler, the new state forest entomologist, is new to Bug Blast; he'll demonstrate the work of wood-boring beetles, "using baked potatoes as a surrogate for wood." And much more!
Please join us for Bug Blast, Sunday September 28, at the Burke Museum, 10 am to 4 pm. You'll be glad you did!
Bug Chef photo by Frank Ross
