Mrs. 'Boro: Bizarre beetle prompts need to share natural world on The Murfreesboro Post

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Mrs. 'Boro: Bizarre beetle prompts need to share natural world

By: JEANNE BRAGG, Post Columnist

Posted: Sunday, August 16, 2009 7:23 am

Sunday I came across a very strange bug on my front stoop.

I originally thought it to be a potato bug, but it was much larger. It was a hard-shelled, scarab-looking “beetle” with a lustrous, divided, golden body, and a luminous crescent-shaped head. There was a perfect black square right in the center that appeared to be an eye. I googled “beetles,” and the closest thing I found to it was a Dutch elm beetle, similar in appearance.

I made Tommy come outside to look at it. He had never seen such a thing, and said, at first, it looked like a gigantic tick. He also said he hoped it never reproduced.

I couldn’t figure out where to go to identify it.

We have Field Guides to birds, trees, shrubs and mushrooms, but none for insects and snakes. Maybe because they both give me the creeps. So I Googled “photos of insects” with mixed results.

Coincidentally, on Monday, there was an article in the New York Times by Carol Kaesuk Yoon about taxonomy, the lost art of “naming the world” (think Audubon’s Bird Plates, Linnaeus’ Botanicals, etc).

In the article, the author noted how various cultures have taken it upon themselves to categorize natural history, and with the advance of science and DNA the “art” of taxonomy is being lost. She said, “Without the power to order and name life, a person does not know how to live in the world; how to understand it ... Because to order and name life is to have a sense of the world around, and what one’s place is in it.”

She further said that studies show that people with brain injuries often do not have the ability to understand the difference between a carrot and a pet. They are therefore lost and anchor-less and lose a place in the living world.

Still curious, I showed the unidentified critter to my son-in-law, Alex. He said he remembered his grandmother, Rachel, made sure her children paid attention to nature, making them identify birds and other living creatures. He said she would even preserve birds if found dead in the yard and insist that they study them. She was also particularly knowledgeable about shells.

Being a new grandmother, I have decided to try to introduce innocence in all its forms to my grandchildren. Perhaps I could also introduce the concepts of taxonomy like Rachel. I may be too late for my children, but it could rub off, if my plan works. I also hope in the meantime, to remind myself of the whole of what surrounds us. We are not the only species residing here.

Even though I don’t prefer to have these “buggy” friends, I realize they are with us, ready or not.

I’ll start by looking for simple children’s books on similar subjects. When my children were young, I loved reading to them from the Richard Scarry’s books that identified material things. The natural world is no doubt just another book away.

I’ll also insist on On the Day You Were Born by Debra Frasier, a beautiful book to show reverence and respect for the natural world. Another beautiful introduction.

I won’t be the first grandparent out there to embark on such a task in a world obsessed with remote controls, texting, digital images, fast food and immediate gratification, but I’ll be among them.

I might be a start to a wonderful legacy to leave behind.

‘Til next week.

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Member Opinions:

By: bugprof on 8/16/09
I wonder whether Mrs. 'Boro collected the beetle in question or took a photograph that could be posted or emailed?
From her description I believe the beetle could be either a variety of the larger elm leaf beetle (http://www.forestryimages.org/search/action.cfm?q=Monocesta) or a cottonwood leaf beetle (http://www.forestryimages.org/browse/detail.cfm?imgnum=1393038). Two good websites to visit for insect IDs are the bugwood network at forestryimages.org and bugguide.net.

By: kcouncil on 8/17/09
without having seen the beetle, i guessed from the description that it was a cottonwood. until she said tommy thought it looked like a giant tick! i have cottonwood trees around my house, so in addition to summer "snow", i find these beetles every once in a while. this would be a great photo to post if Mrs. Bragg took a picture.

By: justdance on 8/21/09

I'm sorry but sometimes I just don't get how (or why) you choose the topics for your articles.

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