Treasures: A Bug’s Worth

scorpion on a rock, with his tail raised

Assistant professor Faith Weeks spends her days surrounded by creepy-crawlies.

She loves it.

“It’s amazing what they can do. These guys are absolutely fantastic,” she says. “They’ve conquered everywhere in the world. They can handle things that we can’t.”

Weeks knows the value of bugs’ existence, in the ecosystem and the classroom.

“If humans weren’t here, nature bounces back,” she says. “If insects and arachnids weren’t here, so many things would be gone. We wouldn’t have the produce we do. We wouldn’t have decomposition like we do. A lot of pests would be around because their predators are gone. Who would pollinate the plants?”

Weeks primarily teaches pre-service science teachers, and she uses her large collection of beetles, scorpions and praying mantises—among others—as much as possible.

“I always bring live things into my elementary ed classes, primarily because they don’t have any experience and get freaked out,” Weeks says. “I am running a study where I bring insects in and I see how much [undergraduates] can understand the role of them in the ecosystem and if they eventually feel more comfortable with [the insects]. So far, the research has shown that students are more comfortable [after exposure]. They’re less likely to kill them, and they’re much more likely to incorporate them into their teaching.”

Bugs 101

brown and cream tarantula crawling on a piece of wood on a white background

Tarantulas

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brown and black cockroach sitting on a flat rock on a white background

Cockroaches

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light green praying mantis sitting on a twig with leaves

Praying Mantises

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Death-Feign Beetles

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Weeks has more than one real-life example of her success. One of her favorites is a current grad student.

“She has been coming to my lab since she was an undergrad,” Weeks explains. “At first she was terrified of tarantulas. Then she started coming to my lab more. Now she asks me, ‘How are my kids today?’”

“The first day, she almost shrieked and ran out of the room. And now she’s trying to convince her mom to get one as a pet.”

Meet Some of Faith’s Friends

Photo of a praying mantis on a stick with leaves on a white background — Carmen, a praying mantis, was raised by a biology staffer.

Single cockroach leaving a rock on a white background — Cockroaches can hold their breath for up to 40 minutes.

Tarantula sitting on top of a wooden mount, on a white background — Weeks’ tarantula Nefertiti is named after the first tarantula to go to space.

Two blue beetles, one on a rock, one upside down on the surface of a white background — Death-feigning beetles, when threatened, roll over on their backs and play dead (pictured). One of Weeks’ beetles will play dead for up to an hour.