I know I’m late to the party on this, but I just heard that The Butterfly Pavilion brought on a new ambassador tarantula in July: Goldie the Chaco Tarantula!

One of my favorite memories as a child in Missouri was catching fireflies on summer nights. It’s something I’ve missed since moving to Colorado. But, I recently learned that Colorado does have a few species of native fireflies - they’re just pretty hard to find.

There’s a lot to unpack here.

Here’s why buying honey can actually “bee” beneficial to bees (under certain circumstances)!

I believe this is a white-lined sphinx moth (Hyles lineata) that I saw while watering plants!

Best known as the host plant to monarch butterflies, “showy” milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) is a very common summer wildflower in Colorado!

In June 2023, Gov. Jared Polis (CO) signed more than twenty bills aimed at addressing climate change in June 2023. This year, he signed two new bills to promote sustainability and protect wildlife in Colorado.

Yup, moths. Rather than spring, summer, fall, and winter, Colorado’s seasons include Almost Spring, Just Kidding, and Optimal Skiing, followed by Moth, Afternoon Hail, On Fire, Still Too Hot, Fall For One Week, Dark, Cold, and Ice. We’ve already moved past Moth Season this year, but it’s never too early to plan for the next!

Pollinator hotels are a great way to provide a habitat for native and solitary insects!

A laboratory mishap led to a surprising discovery: hibernating common eastern bumblebee queens can survive underwater for as long as a week, with exciting implications for species’ survival in a changing climate.

Chemical pollution isn’t just bad for humans and other mammals - insects are at risk, too. A 2024 paper by Chan et al. shows that chemical pollutants disrupt pollinator olfaction (a.k.a., sensing through smell). Since many insects rely heavily on olfaction, the impacts of pollution have been devastating.

I saw this moth on a bench outside a grocery store over the summer. It was huge, about the size of my hand when its wings were outstretched!

I was at the base of a large rock face, maybe 20-25 feet high, and about halfway up I saw something unusual on the rocks. I stopped to look, and something bright yellow was tucked inside an opening in the rock face. At first, I thought it was a really cool mushroom… then I saw the bees!

They’re big now! Plus, someone identified them for me.

Apparently, there are some caterpillars who look just like gummy worms… I’m obsessed 😍