Of late, I'm more frequently called upon to talk about bugs than ever. But to reduce the chances of rendering my audience comatose, I use live insects and hands-on demos to keep things moving. You can also!! This episode describes how to get aquatic insects at almost any time of year using inexpensive improvised gear found in a dollar store, or more durable equipment if you intend to make a habit of this sort of thing.

To see a recent talk go here: tinyurl.com/3htf29tv

And to read about it, you can find my book here:

https://tinyurl.com/McCabeBook

Episode art: timing a standardized sampling event

Freshwater ecologists often group invertebrates based on how they eat. Black fly larvae filter particles out of the water and in one case, they managed to help put a murder behind bars. This time around I'll be chatting about these incredible little organisms that improve water quality and are food chain links between incredibly small morsels and the fish we love to catch.

I'll also be sending some love out to those incredible curators and lovers of books that run independent book stores. On both sides of the Atlantic I have been graciously hosted by independent book stores and I wanted to show my appreciation in this small way.

North Branch Nature Center in Montpelier Vermont will be hosting me on September 26th at 6:30 PM and this event will be co-hosted by Bear Pond Books. We'll talk about my book: Turning Stones: Discovering the Life of Water! You'd all be most welcome!

Macroinvertebrates, or the invertebrates we can see, are sentinels of clean water monitored by professional biologists. They can also be a gateway drug for budding scientists young and young at heart. This episode describes inexpensive equipment for catch-and-release studies of macroinvertebrates in ponds and streams.

This video takes you through the same approaches.

Episode art is clipped from an image uploaded to Wikimedia commons by John Rostron.

Driving directions from Danville if you'd like to join us on Saturday 6/29/24 9:00AM:

At the Route 2 light in Danville, turn south onto Peacham Road. Take an immediate left (at the Danville Post Office) onto Brainerd Street. Stay on Brainerd Street for .8 miles, where you will keep right onto Greenbanks Hollow Road (dirt road). Stay on Greenbanks Hollow Road for 1.9 miles. Go through the covered bridge, and continue south on Thaddeus Stevens Road for one mile.

Parking instructions:

The parking location is on the side of Thaddeus Steven Road at the town line between Peacham and Danville which is one mile south of the Greenbanks Hollow covered bridge in the vicinity of 3027 Thaddeus Stevens Road.

See you at 9am on Saturday.