Bugs Need Heroes
On each episode of Bugs Need Heroes, an ecologist and an illustrator team-up to create a new insect-inspired super hero. The finished characters are posted to our social media pages and at BugsNeedHeroes.com Email us questions about bugs at BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman. Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman. Edited by Derek Conrad. Character artwork by Amanda Niday. ”Ladybug Castle” by Rolemusic is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 International License.
Episodes
This episode we discuss the Reduviidae family, colloquially known as assassin bugs. There are many different kinds and all of them are cunning hunters that turn their prey into Capri Suns and some turn them into fashion. While most are beneficial, there is a deadly exception! Tangents include Naruto ninjas, Elizabeth Wheatley, and Detective Comics Comics' character Ambush Bug.
Kelly's Field Notes: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/...
This week's episode is about a fairly unremarkable aquatic beetle. Tangents include AI generated images, Chris Angel, Hugh Jackman, and horror novels. Includes spoilers for The Prestige.
VIDEO OF THE ESCAPE: https://youtu.be/_W0UJD_i3Mo
Kelly's Field Notes: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/one-trick-magician
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsn...
Kelly has now become Dr Kelly. Much of the episode is about the process of earning a doctorate. The rest of the episode is devoted to discussion of fruit flies, art history, swords, and friend of the pod, Dr Ped. Dr Kelly's Field Notes on our website: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/dr-drosophila
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
We are taking a break while Kelly mounts her defense.
Finally, a bug Amanda recognizes! Fortunately, she doesn't know anything about them still so we can have an episode all about spittlebugs (aka froghoppers) and what makes them a true bug. Tangents include the fabric arts, little kid germs, and the grief of aging (as relayed by Bluey).
Kelly's Field Notes on our website: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/bubble-bug
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.co...
This time we are joined by Bradon Coy of Lil Dudes Insect Academy to discuss his programs, eusocial insects (particularly Argentine Ants), and our favorite bug movies. Lil' Dudes Insect Academy website Lil Dudes Insect Academy on Youtube
Please check out our reading lists and feel free to recommend other books. We'll make Kelly read them before putting them on the list. The lists are not connected to Amazon or anything so we ma...
This week Kelly and Amanda talk about an insect that is a fly in name only. These aquatic insects are know for their large size and fierce appearance. These Tangents include peeing in the woods, gnats, and cats (always).
Kelly's Field Notes on our website: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/heckgrammite
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedhero...
This episode we are joined by another bug hero: Dr Emily Durkin! We talk about her research looking at tiny mites that ride around on fruit flies. Tangents include mosquitoes, hornworms, and pets --including pet jumping spiders!
Emily Durkin's website is here! You can follow Emily on Bluesky!
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Check out this page from the Mono Lake Committee to see images discussed in this episode.
This episode Kelly and Amanda discuss a strange family of flies that live in liquids that would kill other animals. There are around 130 genera described in Ephydridae, but we mostly focus on two species endemic to California which live in the La Brea Tar Pits and Mono Lake. Tangents include the musical...
We talk to Christy Bills of the Natural History Museum of Utah about invertebrate collections, fireflies, and legacies.
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/bugsneedheroes.bsky.social
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing b...
This time we are joined by Ben Knowlton and Zillah Smith of There Will Be Bugs Podcast to talk about one of their favorite bugs, the American Burying Beetle (Nicrophorus americanus). These beetles have it all: battles, mites, and an endangered species listing. But most importantly they have each other. Tangents include tattoos, cats (always!), scale insects, coyotes, and what it's like not being an entomologist. Check out Zillah's...
Kelly and Producer Derek are back from the ESA conference in Pheonix and Kelly shares some stories. Technically this isn't a bug, but the evolutionary arms race between scorpions and their predators has created a truly terrific terror. Tangents include butterflies, the difference between venom and poison, Disney, and vikings.
Kelly's Field Notes for this episode: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/mousy-the-hunter
This is an episode we banked during the summer. Kelly and Amanda discuss velvet ants, which are not actually ants at all. And the Bee-Team lore expands ever onward! Tangents include Zendaya at the Met Gala, Ultraman, and anime villains.
Kelly's Field Notes for this episode: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/the-moo-derer
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagr...
Amanda tells us about the life and work of Dutch entomologist and painter Maria Sibylla Merian.
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad with assistance from Chel...
This time we are joined by our friend Dr Mike Glynn to talk about cats for our Halloween episode. Lots of stories of our dear pets both current and past. A few try to join the podcast!
You can watch the recording from our panel at Rose City Comic Con in 2024 here: https://youtu.be/Zkl70GcOkYU
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
We are back from hiatus and you can really tell with this episode. Kelly and Amanda get all the wiggles out with this very wiggly bug. This episode is more explicit than usual with a very unusual critter.
Kelly's Field Notes for this episode: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/my-neighbor-velvet-worm
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
...This week we are joined once again by Kevin Wiener of All Bugs Go To Kevin. Kevin has a deep love for brown recluses and hopes to dispel some of the fear around this significant arachnid. Tangents include grief, voice notes, and cats. And a special life update from Kevin at the end of the episode.
Kevin's spider heartbeat video: https://youtu.be/BomIw3TjCRA
JAMA paper about the NOT RECLUSE mnemonic: https://jamanetwork.com/journa...
It's NATIONAL MOTH WEEK! We are celebrating by discussing a really hefty bug. A real chonker. There are over 1400 species of Sphingidae moths, and they start as juicy, mouthwatering caterpillars. It is a bug that Amanda has met and you may find in your garden on your tomatoes! We discuss some of their impressive adaptations as we create a character inspired by them. Tangents include ugly babies, summer fun, and Ryan Reynolds as Dea...
Amanda tries (and fails) to resist singing the hit single from 2009 by Owl City as we talk about the Lampyridae family of beetles. They have many names, all of them deceptive. They are not flies, they do not produce heat or lightning, and they are not worms, but they are very buggy. Tangents include the book/film adaptation Where'd You Go Bernadette, the Fey, and several other things that Producer Derek has forgotten because he had...
Popular Podcasts
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.
If you eat, sleep, and breathe true crime, TRUE CRIME TONIGHT is serving up your nightly fix. Five nights a week, KT STUDIOS & iHEART RADIO invite listeners to pull up a seat for an unfiltered look at the biggest cases making headlines, celebrity scandals, and the trials everyone is watching. With a mix of expert analysis, hot takes, and listener call-ins, TRUE CRIME TONIGHT goes beyond the headlines to uncover the twists, turns, and unanswered questions that keep us all obsessed—because, at TRUE CRIME TONIGHT, there’s a seat for everyone. Whether breaking down crime scene forensics, scrutinizing serial killers, or debating the most binge-worthy true crime docs, True Crime Tonight is the fresh, fast-paced, and slightly addictive home for true crime lovers.