Many people pride themselves on being cat or dog ladies, but Alaina Michaels decided to take things in an unexpected new direction. She’s known as The Bugs Lady on Instagram, and she’s using her platform to spread awareness about insects and entomology.
Michaels is an entomologist based in Charleston, South Carolina, with a B.S. in organismal biology and a M.Sc. in ecology and evolutionary biology. She currently teaches biology at Trident Technical College, in addition to volunteering as an insect collection curator at The Charleston Museum.
Since most people avoid insects at all costs, Michaels decided to use the power of social media to spread awareness about them. After her reels on Instagram took off, she started hosting a series of workshops known as “Bug Lady” events, dedicated to everyone who wants to learn more about insects.
The main goal of these workshops is to show people “how to prepare insects as you would for scientific collections [and] teach all ages about the world of entomology.” They can help you build your own terrarium, properly prepare insects for pinning, and teach you how to preserve them properly.
Michaels’ official website also offers a wide range of free resources, from workshop instructions and care guides to insect identification tools.
