{"id":211184,"date":"2025-02-24T12:13:12","date_gmt":"2025-02-24T22:13:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=211184"},"modified":"2025-02-24T12:13:12","modified_gmt":"2025-02-24T22:13:12","slug":"uh-museum-celebrates-darwin-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2025\/02\/24\/uh-museum-celebrates-darwin-day\/","title":{"rendered":"From cricket cookies to carnivorous caterpillars: UH<\/abbr> museum celebrates Darwin Day"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"Researcher
Visitors have access to extensive native insect collections and research<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Insect Museum<\/a> at Gilmore Hall came alive with curiosity and exploration in celebration of Darwin Day 2025, a global celebration of science, discovery and evolutionary biology. Held every year on February 12, UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa\u2019s event featured interactive exhibits and an adventurous insect-tasting session.<\/p>\n

\"Researcher
The museum is part of CTHAR<\/abbr> at UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Nomi Ruiz, a team member of the UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience<\/a> (CTAHR<\/abbr>), examined an assortment of insect snacks at the museum before cautiously biting into a dark chocolate-coated cricket. She eyed a tray of chocolate chip cookies made with cricket flour, but decided she had enough six-legged treats for the day. Her food adventure set the tone for the event, which honored Charles Darwin and his groundbreaking contributions to the study of life sciences and natural selection.<\/p>\n

“Darwin fundamentally reshaped how we view the natural world,” said Dan Rubinoff, director of the UH<\/abbr> Insect Museum and professor at the Department of Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences. “This international event gives us a chance to celebrate those ideas and their relevance today.”<\/p>\n

Rubinoff explained how the museum, which is part of the UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience, highlights Darwin\u2019s legacy of evolution and understanding how life on Earth is shaped by our environment.<\/p>\n

“That\u2019s important not just for itself, but also for agriculture and conservation, because we have invasive species that come in and replace the native species,” Rubinoff said.<\/p>\n

Darwin Day in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"Butterfly
The UH<\/abbr>Insect Museum holds more than half a million specimens<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Spencer Pote, a PhD<\/abbr> student at UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa, emphasized the importance of celebrating Darwin Day in the islands.<\/p>\n

“The islands act almost like a conveyor belt of evolution, with species diversifying in ways we don\u2019t see anywhere else,” Pote said. ”Darwin Day lets us share these incredible stories of natural diversity with the community.”<\/p>\n

Gal\u00e1pagos finches, rare caterpillars<\/h2>\n

The museum buzzed with activity as visitors explored a diverse array of exhibits from UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa\u2019s research labs. Displays featured ocean creatures from Kewalo Marine Lab<\/a> and mantis shrimp from the Porter Vision Lab<\/a>. A collection of Gal\u00e1pagos finches and snails from Bishop Museum\u2019s Malacology Research Center were also on display. One of the most fascinating exhibits at the event showcased rare native species such as Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>\u2019s carnivorous caterpillars alongside invasive insects.<\/p>\n

“We have over half a million specimens,” Rubinoff said. “Many of them date back to 1908, including species now extinct, making this collection invaluable for research and education.”<\/p>\n

KTUH<\/abbr> radio host Alex Sosa reflected on his first Darwin Day experience.<\/p>\n

“It\u2019s been amazing to learn so much—from upside-down jellyfish to carnivorous plants. Honestly, I love seeing science come alive in such a fun, interactive way.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The annual event at UH<\/abbr>\u2019s insect museum featured interactive exhibits and an adventurous insect-tasting session.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[222,212,665,364,1363,9],"class_list":["post-211184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-agriculture","tag-college-of-tropical-agriculture-and-human-resilience","tag-conservation","tag-entomology","tag-manoa-research","tag-uh-manoa","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t