One of the great institutions in Philadelphia is the Academy of Natural Sciences. It is one of the oldest scientific institutions in the country and has internationally renowned collections of plants, animals and insects. In fact, The Entomology Dept of the Academy of Natural Sciences has one of the oldest and largest research insect collections in the world.

One thing they DON'T have, but many of us do, is hive beetles. To quote Don Azuma of the Wagner Institute:

The hive beetle, Aethina tumida, native to sub-Saharan Africa, is a relatively recent introduced pest to the U.S. The Academy does not have any specimens of this species in their collection. Would anyone in the Guild be interested in collecting hive beetles for the Academy collection? It’s a pretty straightforward procedure. You drop the little guys in vials of alcohol. The Academy would supply the pre-filled vials.

So, here's your chance to join Lewis & Clark, Hayden and Audubon as a contributor to the oldest scientific collection in the Western Hemisphere. If you're interested, speak to Nicole Juday at a Guild meeting in the coming months.