By Alex Golden
Celebrating the Little Things that Run the World
Bugfest and the Bernheim BugBlitz highlight biodiversity and ecological significance of bugs.
On Saturday, September 19, 2026, approximately 1,800 guests joined the fun at BugFest. This year, we celebrated “the little things that run the world.” Despite the heat, there was a great deal of fun to be had, from mealworm races to a fantastic buggy costume parade.
The Insect Safaris were also a resounding success, with groups filling up practically as soon as sign-ups were available, and palpable excitement out on the trails while searching for bugs.
The inaugural Bernheim Bugblitz celebrated a successful first run. This bioblitz truly embodied the spirit of community science, with 109 bug observations of 78 species made between September 17 and 20. Nearly 50 people participated in the bioblitz as either photo contributors or insect identifiers!
Bernheim’s Research Coordinator Kelly Vowels won the titles of both “Most Observations” and “Most Species Seen” with 33 observations of 23 unique species of arthropods (bugs). Her observations included everything from orb weaver spiders to potter wasps to the threatened monarch butterfly!
Other notable finds from the weekend included moths, mantids, centipedes, millipedes, stink bugs and spiders galore. Check out the links below to see some of the documented species.
- Capopy Jumping Spider (Phidippus otiosus), iNaturalist.org
- Log Lurker (Euryurus leachii), iNaturalist.org
- Monarch (Danaus plexippus), iNaturalist.org
- Harnessed Tiger Moth (Apantesis phalerata), iNaturalist.org
- Arrowhead Orbweaver (Verrucosa arenata), iNaturalist.org
If you missed this year’s BugBlitz, that’s ok! There is an iNaturalist project which runs all year long at Bernheim capturing photos of fauna and flora contributed by guests, volunteers, and staff. No need to miss the fun just because you couldn’t make it to the forest for BugFest this year. And there is always next year – not only will the BugBlitz return, but you can join us to celebrate 25 years of BugFest!
