Bug Hunter’s Handbook
A Citizen Science Project By DIY BIO Hong Kong
Copyright © 2018 by DIY BIO Hong Kong
This book is the collective effort from the DIY BIO Hong Kong community. We want to thanks the following people who contributed to the making of this book and the Bug Hunt Hong Kong project. Gert Grobler Maria Li Reynald De Guzman Isabel Hui Teresa Siu Mike Yuen Stephen Wong
First Edition 2018
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Contact Us http://diybiohk.org https://www.facebook.com/BugHuntHK/ https://www.facebook.com/DIYBIOHongKong/ https://www.meetup.com/DIYBIOHK/ https://www.instagram.com/diybiohongkong/ info@diybiohk.org
What is Bug Hunt Hong Kong?
Bug Hunt Hong Kong is an initiative from DIYBIO Hong Kong, a group of citizen scientists in Hong Kong. It is a long term citizen science project studying the insect biodiversity of Hong Kong. Hong Kong has a large biodiversity, with insects comprising a large part of the biodiversity. Yet most people in Hong Kong are disconnected to nature and even have an aversion of insects. We want to encourage people to take ownership of nature and to enhance the public’s knowledge and understanding of insects while contributing to the Biodiversity knowledge of Hong Kong’s insects. The goals of the project are to build a public accessible collection of insects in Hong Kong that can be used to educate the public about Hong Kong’s insect biodiversity. This collection can be exhibited at public events such as the Hong Kong Biodiversity Week. We also want to generate DNA barcodes of the different insects in the collection in order to build a DNA barcode library of Hong Kong insects and to contribute to the international barcode of life initiative.
Welcome to the Bug Hunt! I am Professor Darwin and I am an expert Bug Hunter. I have studied many rare and interesting bugs and I have even discovered some new ones that nobody has seen before! I am here to teach you, the new generation of Bug Hunters, all the basics so that you can go on your own bug hunting adventures.
your mission: To study as much about bugs as possible.
What are bugs? The word bug is used to describe all the small crawling critters of the world that live on land, us scientists call them Terrestrial Arthropods which include:
Insects they have 6 legs and generally one or two pairs of wings and include things like butterflies, ants, grasshoppers, and beetles
Arachnids they have 8 legs and include things like spiders, ticks and scorpions
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Myriapods they have many legs and include things like millipedes and centipedes
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Why does the world need Bug Hunters? Hong Kong has a large biodiversity, with many plants, animals and insects. In fact, insects make up a very large part of the biodiversity. Yet most people in Hong Kong don’t know a lot of the insects in Hong Kong and many are even afraid of insects. One of the tasks of Bug Hunters is to help people understand that bugs are important, interesting and even beautiful. We want people to care about bugs. Only if people know about and care about bugs will they help to protect them. Because there are so many different bugs, there are many who have not been discovered yet and do not have names. If we do not know what kind of bugs live in Hong Kong, how can we protect them? You can decide what kind you want to be!
There are different kinds of Bug Hunters! specialist bug hunter extreme specialist bug hunter
generalist bug hunter
These Bug Hunters study all kinds of bug they can find. The good thing about this is that they get to know many different kinds of bugs and really learn about Biodiversity in general. Biodiversity means the variety of living things in the world. The problem with being a Generalist Bug Hunter is that there are so many different bugs that it is impossible to know all of them and one can very easily get lost.
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These Bug Hunters study only bugs from the same type e.g. they will only study butterflies or dragonflies or stick insects. These Bug Hunters try to collect one of each type of insect within the group that they have chosen. This is much more manageable, and it allows one to become an expert of a certain group of bugs. As some groups of bugs are very large, like the beatles, they can be divided into sub-groups and a Specialist Bug Hunter might decide to focus only on a specific sub-group within the larger group.
These Bug Hunters choose a single species and find out as much as possible of that one species. These Bug Hunters will ask questions like: “Is this species founvd on all the 261 islands of Hong Kong?”, “Is this species found in all the country parks in Hong Kong?”, “What does it eat?”, “Does it have a nest?”, “What does its eggs look like?”, “Can I breed it?”, and many more.
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there are many bugs that have never been found before and that have not been described or named. It is every Bug Hunter’s dream to find a new species of bug that has not been found before. You too can find new species of bugs if you try hard enough!
DNA Barcodes
Just like the barcodes on different things in the supermarket can be scanned to identify different products, can we generate short DNA sequences from different bugs that can be used to identify them.
Taxonomy
Taxonomy is the classification of organisms. In other words we want to sort them into similar groups. In order to do this, Bug Hunters need to collect some bugs and look at their morphology. Morphology is what do they look like. By looking at all the details of a specific bug,
Take Photos or Videos of Bugs Bug Hunters like to walk in nature and try to find interesting bugs. They will then take photos or videos of the bugs they find and share them with each other. There are also many online forums and dedicated Facebook pages where people share their bug photos with each other. They will then try to name the bugs. Some Bug Hunters become experts at macro photography (when you take photos of small things from close up so that you can see a lot of detail).
We can use the DNA barcodes to: a) Identify the bug’s species b) Draw genetic trees to see how different bugs are related to each other c) Compare the DNA Barcodes from the same species of bug from many different locations to see if we can learn something about different populations or how spread through an area through time. This link up very nicely with studies of bug Ecology.
How do Bug Hunters study bugs? Bug Ecology
Bug Art
Bugs are not only interesting, they are also beautiful. They have the most amazing colours, patterns and shapes! Bug Hunters get inspired by these wonderful colours, patterns and shapes and make beautiful bug inspires art, fashion, and accessories.
Keep Bugs as Pet or Breed bugs Bugs make wonderful pets! They don’t need a lot of food, don’t have to be taken for walks and don’t need a lot of space. They are also very interesting to watch. There are different ways of making bug-houses wherein your bugs will live happily. You can also breed your bugs and see how they lay eggs. You can then monitor and document their life cycle from egg to adult. Some bugs undergo the most fascinating metamorphoses, for instance when caterpillars change to butterflies they break their old bodies completely down to re-arrange all their cells in order to be able to fly!
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Bug Ecology is the scientific vstudy of how bugs, individually or as a community, interact with the surrounding environment. We want to know what they eat and what eats them? Where they are found? If their habitat is in danger? What do their eggs look like? How do they change over time as they grow. Where do they sleep? In what way are they important? Many bugs help in pollination, or they help to break down the poo or dead bodies of other animals. Many insects eat other insects and prevent them from taking over the world. Some insects are useful by making honey or silk.
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How do Bug Hunters collect bugs responsibly ?
As Bug Hunters we sometimes have to collect and kill bugs to study them
1) Only collect and kill bugs if you really have to Most of the time, for example, taking photos of bugs, keep them as pet or study the bug ecology, you will observe the bugs closely but not neccessary kill them. When is it okay to collect and kill bugs? a) When you are 100% sure that the bug that you want to collect is not yet in the Bug Hunt collection. Make sure that you know what bugs are already in the collection. If a bug is already in the collection, it can be used as reference for that species. We only need one of each bug in our collection. b) When you want to study the population genetics of one specific species of bugs. Here you need specimens of the same species of bug from different parts of Hong Kong. You will need about 3-4 specimens per location. But before you do this plan your research project well, come and discuss it with us and we will give you the necessary guidance
2) Know where you are allowed to collect bugs In Hong Kong it is illegal to collect bugs in any of the Country Parks or other protected areas without a permit from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department. If you want to collect bugs from Country Parks or Protected areas, you must write a research proposal to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and get their permission. Next page is a map of the protected areas in Hong Kong. You may also not go into someone’s private land or parks without permission. So make sure that you do not break the law!
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This book is licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA license. copyright Š DIY BIO Hong Kong
It was obtained from the AFCD’s website at this link https://www.afcd.gov.hk/english/country/cou_vis/cou_vis_cou/files/KeyPlan_1_CP_SA_v1.jpg
Know that there are bugs that you can not collect In Hong Kong it is illegal to collect specimens of Troides helena also known as the Common Birdwing Butterfly.
Common Birdwing, Troides helena
Golden Birdwing, Troides aeacus
Rare
Rare
The largest butterfly in Hong Kong
The largest butterfly in Hong Kong
species have been recorded in Po Lo Che, Fung Yuen Valley , Tai Po Kau, Ngong Ping, Tai Lam Wu, Tai Tam Country Park and Shing Mun Country Park.
species have been recorded in Po Lo Che, Fung Yuen Valley , Tai Po Kau, Ngong Ping, Tai Lam Wu, Tai Tam Country Park and Shing Mun Country Park.
Do not collect bugs that are dangerous to catch by hand, thus do not catch bees or wasps
The photos are from the AFCD’s website and Wikipedia. Please follow the liks to get more information on these butterflies: https://www.afcd.gov.hk/english/conservation/hkbiodiversity/speciesgroup/speciesgroup_butterflies.html
Know how you can collect bugs You can not just go out and catch bugs. There are certain laws that you have to follow!
It is illegal in Hong Hong to use any kind of hunting apparatus to collect bugs without a permit. This counts for everywhere in Hong Kong, not only in Country Parks or protected areas, but even in your home! This means: No nets! No traps! No lights! No snares! No poison! No aspirators!
Photo credit to Wiki How to
The only way to legally catch a bug in Hong Kong without a permit is by catching it by hand! If you want to use traps to collect bugs, you must write a research proposal to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and get their permission.
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Know what to do when you collect a bug Record the bug you have collected with the iNaturalist App - The best is to record it under your Team Name under the Bug Hunt project. This is important as it will record:A Photo The GPS coordinates of where it was collected and information on who collected it.
Or you can put the bug into alcohol or in the freezer
Kill the bug - Do not squash or squish the bug. You can place it in a Killing Jar A killing Jar is any container with a lid. Inside the container place some cotton wool that has been soaked in acetone. If you do not have acetone, you can use nail polish remover as most of them are acetone base.
The bug will quickly die in alcohol. Placing the bug in alcohol is really good for doing DNA Barcoding later. One of the problems with alcohol is that it can wash away the coloured scales from wings and change the colour of bugs over time.
Pin the bug - In order to keep the bugs save in our collection we need to pin them and store them
Adding a labels to the bug is important, because it gives all the important information we need to make the bug useful in research. So please add: Who collect it Date and time Location (E,g, GPS)
What kind of bug it is (you do not have to give the specific species name, but you should at least know which group of it)
photo credit to Haywood Community College from https://bit.ly/2Kzard5
photo credit to Purdee University from https://bit.ly/2MBgVpe
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Any insect smaller than this arrow ---> should be displayed by the pointing method.
Take a nice photo of the bug
Except for the physical collection of insects, we will also build an online database of the insects in the collection that anyone can access to see photos of the bugs in the collection. This online database will also contain all the information on the bug labels.
Submit the bug to the Bug Hunt Collection
This will help other Bug Hunters not to collect the same things and not to study the same bugs as others, this way we can get more information on more different bugs.
Submit any interesting information about your bug that you have found out
This information will also be added to the online database. The more we know the more we can share. The more we share the more people will learn to care about our wonderful bug biodiversity.
You have been learning how to study bugs and how to handle them with care. Now, let‛s find out how you can participate in the Bug Hunt.
So you are ready to join the Bug Hunt?
I am READY!
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How do Bug Hunters participate in the Bug Hunt? 1. Form a team
2. Pick a track
Bug DNA Barcoding
Bug photography or Film
3. Plan a project or scientific investigation
Bug Ecology Bug Art, Design or Fashion
Bug Taxonomy
4. Sign up you team Bug Pets or Breeding
5. Do your project! Don’t worry, we at the Bug Hunters Headquarters are ready to give you advice and any training that you might need to complete your project or scientific investigation. Keep an eye open for Bug Hunter Workshops that will be held throughout the year. This book is licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA license. copyright Š DIY BIO Hong Kong
Fill in the form: https://bit.ly/2KvyVRk
6. Join to share in the Bug Hunt Fest
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Bug Hunt Fest At the Bug Hunt Fest each team of Bug Hunters will: - display their projects or scientific investigations at different booths. Teams can bring their projects, use posters, do demonstrations or use any other means to display their projects. - share what you have learned and done with the general public who will be invited to come and look at your display. - give a 5 min presentation in English to the judges of the event about your project or scientific investigation.
A prize will be awarded to the best project or scientific investigation in each of the six Bug Hunting Tracks.
What if you do not want to be a Bug Hunter, but you still want to support the Bug Hunt? Be a sponsor! You can sponsor the Bug Hunt in different ways: 1) You can sponsor a specific event in the Bug Hunt Fest.
At the Bug Hunt Fest we will also have different Bug inspired events including games, stories, talks, lectures and many more.
2) You can sponsor prizes for the different competitions in the Bug Hunt Fest. 3) You can sponsor the generation of DNA Barcodes of different bugs. 4) You can sponsor the storage of our bug collection. 5) You can run an event during the Bug Hunt Fest. 6) You can sponsor any of the Bug Hunters Teams directly for example if you know some of the team members, you can ask what they need to make their project successful. 7) Any general or other types of sponsors are welcome to make the Bug Hunt a great success.
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This book is licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA license. copyright Š DIY BIO Hong Kong
BE A BUG HUNTER!
