I am an entomologist and a retired zookeeper and nurse.

I earned my BSA in Entomology from the University of Georgia, Athens in 1975. I took my first entomology classes at Farmingdale State University in Farmingdale, NY where I earned my AAS in Biological Technology with a Major in Laboratory Animal Care and Management in 1970.

I have been doing my "A Look Into The Insect World" slide show and lecture for libraries, schools and interested groups for 30 years now in the Augusta, GA area.

I am an unpublished children's book author and I hope to have articles about insects and my misadventures as a zookeeper published in children's magazines in the near future.

Primarily American Silk Moths and Praying Mantises, but I am interested in any and all Arthropods and insects. I grow fennel so that I'll have Black Swallowtail caterpillars each year, and hope to have a butterfly garden again in the future.

I also have had in the 1980's a pair of adult Eastern Hercules Beetles as pets for 1 year. I've also raised one praying mantis from 1st instar to adulthood.

I have raised 100 Cecropia moths per year for fifteen plus years, and some Polyphemus moths, as a child and adolescent, and Polyphemus, Luna and Hickory Horned Devil caterpillars as an adult. Also, I've raised one praying mantis from 1st instar to adulthood. My family also raised Monarchs, Mourning Cloaks, Black Swallowtails, a few Bombyx mori, and other caterpillars too.

I am a member of LinkedIn, AARP, Helium, and Friends of the Library and St. Andrew Presbyterian Church USA in Augusta, GA.

I've been writing haiku verses since 1999, and have been designing and making pop-up and traditional greeting cards since 1987. I write haiku verses for all of my greeting cards which I send to friends, and home bound and/or grieving church members. I've drawn insects on Corel Draw and use these drawings in my greeting cards.

I am also interested in anything related to insects, animals, cats and nature, sewing, reading [mostly nonfiction, historical novels, health, haiku, suspense and mysteries, health and medical, and adventure, woodworking, pioneers and the skills that they used to survive, folk medicine, entomophagy], learning more about insects on the Internet, collecting minute insects and identifying the insects in my collection, photography and identifying and cleaning my late father, Philip Bergh's, 2000 ultra close-up insect slides that he took between the 1940's and 1980's.

Today, Nov. 4, 2010, I found a very cold female praying mantis outside of a Krystal Restaurant, and really startled the folks by paying with my right hand while holding this beautiful brown mantis on my left hand. She was grooming most of the time, and I was in heaven, just holding her while I ate a quick meal.

I've asked my roommate to find me a gerbil or other cage for her and to buy me some mealworms to feed her with... and she had to ask me where to find them at WalMart!

So, now I have the first mantis I have seen in a number of years, and I will continue the tradition my family had, when I was growing up, of bringing in mantises before the first frost, and putting them on curtains in my rooms where I fed and watered them each day- and they often lasted until the end of November then! Now I have 2 cats, so she must be caged, but I am just happy just holding her and watching her groom herself and walk around!

November 28, 2010:

Lady Brownie is doing well, and has laid two egg cases in her cage and is doing well on a diet of mealworms, yogurt and water. Her belly is still huge and she is hungry every day, so I expect that she will lay at least one egg case any day now.

Here is what i wrote about her today on my WordPress blog:

I have now had the pleasure of having a pet female praying mantis for about three weeks now!

I have been praying to find an adult female praying mantis for years now, and on a recent cold and rainy day I found one at a Krystal Drive Thru on the curb outside of the building when I want to pay for and pick up my order. I rarely go there because of the salt in their sandwiches, but I did it on a spur of the moment action and there she was! She was so hunkered down to the curb that for a moment I thought she might be dead.

I stopped instantly, jumped out and picked her up, and she ruffled her wings at me and tried to pinch me- a good sign-which showed she was still feisty!

I drove up to the window to pay them, and the women there jerked back from my hand and shrieked "Oh my God, is it a moth?" I told them what she was, and they took my money hurriedly, as I told them how we used to bring in mantises every year before the first and put one on each set of curtains around the house. I took care of them and fed and watered each one daily, and they learned to drink water from spoons... and I have my late father, Philip Bergh's, slides to prove this. And, often they would last well into December before they finally died of old age.

Meanwhile, as she sat calmly on my left hand, and was warming up, the ladies asked me if I'd name her, and I told them , "Yes, Lady Brownie", for that was what we named all of our lovely brown praying mantises with the green stripe down their lateral wings. Well, I got my food, and just sat there eating it with a very happy heart and a big smile on my face!

I called my friend Jan and asked her to get me a gerbil cage for Lady Brownie, and she said that she hadn't heard me this happy in a long time! Then, I called her back a few minutes later and asked her to also get me some mealworms, as I had to feed he, and this was met with gales of laughter and, "Where will I find them?" I told her WalMart's pet section or a pet store, and several hours later, there she was with a small mammal cage and a container of mealworms. She greeted me by asking me if I appreciated all of the trouble she went to because of my love of insects? I replies, that I had been thinking just of this and how all of my friends at some point had assisted me some way when I was raising caterpillars or other insects just for the fun of it! She then and cut off a branch for her cage, and held her while I fitted the branch to the cage, and she agreed that mantises were really cool and fascinating insects!

And now, every day I water her either with drops on my fingertip or from a spoon, and give her a mealworm or more/day and sometimes some yogurt too. She has now laid two egg cases in her cage, and her abdomen is still huge, so she will probably lay at least one more egg case soon. Right now she is resting under my lamp on my sleeve, and is watching me as I type, and I feel so very lucky, to once again, after nearly 45 years, to have a pet praying mantis again!

December 21, 2010:

Lady Mantis died on December 15th and I miss having her around. She suddenly did not want to eat or drink much, and was having trouble moving. I was ill for a few days, and every time I was able to get up and see her, I found she hadn't moved at all. I have moved her cage out onto the porch for the winter, as I do not want the nymphs to hatch before next spring or summer, depending on the date they hatch. I look forward to seeing the nymphs hatch next year, and watching the 1/4 inch little "tigers" look for their first meals. I don't know if I will try to rear a baby or two, but if I do, I will set up a fruit fly colony in their cage so that they will have plenty of food to catch and eat! But, I feel so fortunate that I had her for 1 month and almost two weeks- and I hope that I won't have to wait nearly as long before I have a new Lady Mantis!

Today, Nov. 4, 2010, I found a very cold female praying mantis outside of a Krystal Restaurant.

I've asked my roommate to find me a gerbil or other cage for her and to buy me some mealworms to feed her with at WalMart!

I hope she will attract a male praying mantis if I put her out in her cage on some warmer days this Fall, for I would love for her to lay a fertile egg case and have babies to enjoy next year!

I am a professional Entomologist and I have been doing my "A Look Into The Insect World" slide show and lecture for libraries, schools and interested groups for 30 years now in the Augusta, GA area. I have had articles published about my "A Look Into The Insect World" lecture in the Columbia County News-Times and the Augusta Chronicle.

I am the Manager of the LinkedIn Insects and Entomology Group.

I have had haiku published in the Senior News, and limericks in the Georgia Writer and the Augusta Chronicle.

I primarily educate children, but love talking about insects with anyone of any age who is interested in them.

http://www.linkedin.com/in/insectlady
http://insectlady.wordpress.com

Arthropod related Movies: Charlotte's Web, The Hellstrom Chronicle, Joe's Apartment, A Bug's Life, Otherwise, I prefer humorous movies both old and new: Marx Brother's, Mae West, Lily Tomlin, and Bette Midler's movies. Also, children's movies, and Wallace and Grommet movies.

Music: Simon and Garfunkel, Beatles, Electric Light Orchestra, classic rock music from the 60's and early 70's, classical music, and many country and bluegrass songs.

My favorite authors are: Laura Ingalls Wilder [Her chiildhood pioneer life], Gerald Malcolm Durrell [A very humorous writer of his misadventures and adventures as he collected and raised animals and insects as a child and founded a zoo on the Island of Jersey], Eric Sloane [Woodworking and how pioneers and early settlers in America made fences buildings and barns], James Michener, Janet Evanovich [Her Stephanie Plum novels], Tamar Myers [Pennsylvania Dutch cooking mysteries, to name a few!

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