I hope you have read the Hound of Baskervilles, written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, featuring the famous detective Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson? If not, go ahead and read. If you have, you may know what entomology means! The prime suspect and the villain from the Hound of Baskervilles is an entomologist, Jack Stapleton, who collects butterflies in the novel!
Let’s learn more about E for Entomology!
Entomology is the study of insects. It is a branch of the more popular Zoology. (Zoology is not going to be the topic for Z, I have something else planned out.)
Although Entomology is listed as a hobby here, it can be taken up as a serious profession because, entomologists also solve crimes! (Only see the video below if you are not disgusted by insects.)
The most common way to pursue this as a hobby is participating in insect identification.
Mr.Bee and I had visited the American Museum of Natural History, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and walked till my feet were sore on the way back to our hotel. It is one of my best memories of our stay at USA. Even in the National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C., United States there is also an Insect Zoo. Both are worth a visit.
Many might not know, but entomology frames are also sold, for people who like collecting insects, like butterflies. (Don’t roll your eyes. Different people have different interests)
Entomology frame of real butterflies, preserved through taxidermy
In the broader sense, entomology is also related to bee keeping, to study the bees and how they act as pollinators. Now with the near extinction of bees, this has become an important part of entomology studies.
Although looking at insects and studying them for long may not be everyone’s cup of tea, studying insects does help a lot. Have you ever wondered where the scientists get ideas from? Doesn’t a centipede remind you the functioning of a train? Doesn’t a dragon fly show you the similarity between it and the planes during the initial days of aircraft invention?
A fast flying dragon fly inspired Aircraft design
Go ahead and study the insects, if deducing the secrets of nature is your point of interest!
P.S:
- The first time I ever saw an entomology frame of butterflies was in a game called Seeker’s Note, where we need to search for some objects before the time runs out. Even simple games teach us new stuff, you just need the eye for observation!
- Since this is a post about insects, I didn’t want to gross out the readers who are sensitive. So I have refrained from posting any questionable pics, except for the video, for which I have already given a fair warning! By the way, the opinions and deductions in the post are mine alone.
- The other hobbies starting with an E are Elephant Polo, Endurance Racing, Equestrian sports, Embroidery and Engraving.
Till the next post, ciao!