Great Lakes Entomological Society

05/21/2026

One of the coolest parts of stream monitoring is that some of the smallest critters can tell us the biggest things. Through MiCorps: Michigan Clean Water Corps, the Volunteer Stream Monitoring Program helps local groups monitor stream health by looking at aquatic macroinvertebrates and habitat conditions in wadeable streams and rivers. These “stream bugs” are one of the ways communities and EGLE can better understand which waterways may need a closer look. We love this program for the way it turns curiosity, light fieldwork, and good old-fashioned rock flipping into meaningful water data.

Right now, some stream teams around Michigan are hosting collection events, some are wrapping up, and many have bug sorting dates on the calendar. If you want to check out a group near you to see what they're up to, check out the VSMP page on the MiCorps website to see organizations currently supported through the program: https://www.micorps.net/streams/orgs

04/24/2026

Five-inch wingspan. Yellow and black. Bigger than your palm. I look like I belong on a flower.

I'm on your driveway. Proboscis in the wet gravel.

I'm an eastern tiger swallowtail and right now I need something your flowers can't give me. Sodium. I'm extracting it from the minerals dissolved in the mud and gravel on your wet driveway.

Nectar gives me sugar for flight. But sodium runs my nervous system, my muscles, and one thing that matters more than anything else right now — my s***m. I store the sodium and pass it to the female when we mate. She transfers it to her eggs.

The mud puddle isn't a mistake. It's a strategy.

I'll raise two broods this summer. My caterpillars eat tulip tree, wild cherry, and birch — the big trees, not your garden plants. They're green with fake eyespots that make them look like tiny snakes.

You'll know me by the stripes — four thick black bands on yellow wings. Hindwing tails. And a gliding flight that looks more like soaring than flapping.

🐾 Where to find me:

- Mud puddles, wet driveways, and damp sand — I'm extracting minerals, not lost
- Flower gardens — I'm a strong pollinator of deep-throated flowers
- Forest edges and river corridors — my preferred habitat
- If you see a cluster of us on wet ground, we're almost certainly all males

I didn't choose the parking lot by accident. I chose it because your flowers don't have what I need right now. 🌿

04/22/2026

04/16/2026

It's that time of year again ...

04/05/2026

Hoppy Easter from MiCorps, celebrating spring at the "macro" level!

01/21/2026

A meme for your thoughts ... 🤔🕷️💚

11/30/2025

Tis the season!

09/25/2025

🤔... 🩴🐛
Just gonna leave this right here. 😄
You're welcome! 💚