Samuel Ramsey, PhD
Entomologist
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Co-authored Articles (24)
How to
Identify and Treat Recluse (Fiddleback) Spider Bites
In the United States, most spiders you come across are harmless, but the brown recluse spider is an exception. The brown recluse spider is aptly named because it behaves like a recluse. This nocturnal spider likes to hid...
How to
Breed Mealworms
If you have hungry reptiles or fish to feed, breeding your own mealworms is an excellent way to save some cash and ensure your pets are getting proper nutrition. Mealworms are actually darkling beetles in the larval stag...
How to Take Care of a Woolly Bear Caterpillar
Find out what woolly bears eat & how to raise them Woolly bear caterpillars, the larvae form of the tiger moth, are a well-known sign of fall in North America. These charmingly fluffy caterpillars are easy to care for at...
How to
Raise Mealworms
Mealworms are widely used as feeder insects for birds, chickens, fish, reptiles, rodents, and other pet animals. If you have multiple pets that feed on mealworms, it makes sense to start breeding your own. Setting up you...
How to
Care for Mealworms
Mealworms are the early life stage of darkling beetles, and are often used as food for pets such as reptiles, spiders, birds, and even rodents. Aside from that, they also act as an important part of the natural ecosystem...
How to
Preserve Insects
Insects are fascinating and complex creatures. Many people find enjoyment in preserving the bodies of dead insects. Individuals commonly preserve insects either for purposes of scientific identification and study, or as ...
How to
Preserve a Butterfly
Butterflies are beautiful to look at, and collectors enjoy preserving multiple species to admire their wing patterns. If you’ve found a dead butterfly or captured one that you want to save, you can either pin it in a d...
Identifying Brown Recluse Spiders: Unique Characteristics
Learn if a spider is a brown recluse and what to do if you're bitten These shy little spiders are most known by their dark-brown violin markings, which is why they're also called "fiddle-back" or "violin" spiders. Althou...
How to Keep Feeder Crickets From Dying
A simple guide to caring for crickets for reptiles & other pets If you’re keeping crickets to feed to your reptiles, fish, or other pets, you probably want to maximize the number of insects that you keep alive. Luckily...
How to
Preserve Insects in Resin
A step-by-step guide for preserving bugs in resin Whether you want to make a really cool paperweight or preserve a rare butterfly specimen for years to come, encasing (casting) an insect in resin is a great DIY project. ...
How to Stop Crickets from Chirping Outside or Inside Your Home
''Say goodbye to the never-ending chirps for good''After a long, hectic day, nothing is better than crawling into your cozy bed, resting your head on a soft pillow, and closing your eyes until…''chirp chirp''. The cric...
The Best Ways to Get Rid of Crickets Inside and Outside Your Home
Quickly control your cricket problem with our expert-backed guide Crickets are nocturnal, light brown or black insects with long back legs. During the summer, their loud chirping at night can be a nuisance whether the ...
How to
Take Care of a Grasshopper
For those interested in keeping insects as pets, grasshoppers offer a good choice as they are inexpensive (even free), don’t require any type of special food, and don’t need much in the way of space or other supplies...
How to
Care for a Caterpillar
Caterpillars make great, easy pets for kids and adults alike. As long as you provide them with enough to eat, they require relatively little effort to take care of. And the best part? You get to watch the little critters...
How to
Snail Farm
Snail farming, otherwise known as heliciculture, is a lucrative practice that's common all over the world. Snails are sold for their meat and are used in popular escargot dishes. To start and maintain a healthy snail far...
A Complete Guide on Bug Pinning from Start to Finish
Expert tips for collecting, thawing, and displaying your bug collectionIf you want to start building up an insect collection, it’s so easy to find and pin any bug that you find. Pinning is the perfect way to preserve a...
How to Kill a Cricket that's Loose in Your House
Your guide to catching, killing, and preventing crickets in your homeIf you’ve got a cricket in your home, you’re probably looking for advice on how to catch it, and then kill it or set it free. You’ve come to the ...
How to
Make a Caterpillar Habitat
Everything you need to build a habitat and take care of caterpillarsEver wanted to keep caterpillars, watch them form into chrysalises and then fly off after maturity? It’s quite simple to make a good habitat for cater...
How to
Breed Grasshoppers
Whether you're using them as a food source for a pet reptile or amphibian or keeping them as pets themselves, breeding grasshoppers is actually really easy to do. First, you need to catch a male and female grasshopper, o...
How to
Feed a Grasshopper
Having a pet grasshopper is a great alternative to more high maintenance pets like dogs and cats. Help your child learn some responsibility by letting them keep a grasshopper as a pet. They may be less work than other ki...
