There are, sadly, probably more misguided perceptions about insects than there are accurate ‘takes’. But there are plenty of preconceived ideas about those who take an interest in them, too.

High among them is the sense that insect interest is just for kids; something that should be ‘grown out of’. Such views are supported by the high availability of products bearing insect iconography among children’s’ toys and clothing, with such imagery generally tapering off (but not entirely) with age.

Personally, I have recently come to a realisation that it’s not just my decidedly mediocre mathematics that put me off the idea of pursuing zoological interests in favour of journalistic ones, before returning now, in my thirties, to a world of pitfall traps and invertebrate amazement once again. I have been labouring for way too long under feelings that a keen intense interest in insects, and indeed nature more broadly, for its own sake is somehow juvenile – something to cringe about rather than indulge or even celebrate.

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