Exhibit 04

Bug hunting

You don’t need much to go looking for minibeasts. A pot, a lens and a bit of patience will do, and a garden, park or patch of woodland is plenty.

Where to look

Under logs and stones. Woodlice, centipedes, millipedes, beetles and slugs like it dark and damp.
In leaf litter. Shake a handful over a white tray and see what drops out.
In long grass and flowers. Sweep a net gently through on a dry day.
On walls and fences in the sun. A good spot for jumping spiders.
By ponds. Watch for dragonflies hunting over the water.

Put every log and stone back exactly as you found it. Someone lives under there.
Look, draw or photograph, then let them go where you found them, the same day.
Move small critters with a soft brush or let them walk onto a leaf. Don’t pinch.
Keep pots out of the sun, and never keep anything in a sealed jar.
Look but don’t pick up centipedes. A centipede’s “fangs” are really its front pair of legs, changed into venomous pincers called forcipules. [source]
Leave Roman snails alone. In England the Roman snail is protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, so it’s illegal to kill, injure, collect or sell one. [source]
Out after dark? Keep torches low and brief near grassland. A 2014 study found that even low levels of light pollution can stop male glow-worms finding females. [source]

These links go to Amazon UK. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. It doesn’t cost you extra.

A clear bug pot with a magnifying lid: find on Amazon UK
A 10× hand lens: find on Amazon UK
A soft paintbrush, for moving tiny critters without squashing them: find on Amazon UK
A pooter, for sucking up small insects safely (you suck one tube, the bug goes in the other): find on Amazon UK
A sweep net for long grass: find on Amazon UK
A white tray, so small things show up: find on Amazon UK
A field guide to insects of Britain: find on Amazon UK
A waterproof notebook: find on Amazon UK

Then check what you found against Count the legs.