VINS North Branch Nature Center To Celebrate First Annual Bug Fest

MONTPELIER -- There's hardly anywhere you can go in nature and not find a bug. Flying bugs, crawling bugs, bugs that help plants pollinate and bugs that are pests. Love them or hate them, here‚s an event that is sure to have a bug for you! On Sunday, August 1 at the VINS North Branch Nature Center, come to the First Annual Bug Fest to get your entomological fix!

The First Annual Bug Fest has something for everyone from the smallest bug enthusiast to the amateur entomologist. For those with a keen eye on the insect world, there will be outdoor workshops on butterflies and dragonflies as well as butterfly garden tours that will also teach you how to bring these fluttering wonders to your yard. For the younger hands-on bug lovers, there will be a Kids Tent filled with crafts, games, Bug Olympics and more.

Throughout the day, there will be bug walks throughout the field and river at the nature center; a ongoing honeybee demonstrations; information about the VINS Butterfly Survey and ask your bug question to Dr. Gordon Neilson, "The Bug Doctor" on WDEV. There will be a dragonfly workshop with Bryan Pfeiffer; butterfly identification with Chip Darmstadt and various bug walks with members of the Vermont Entomological Society.

"We've had predator festivals and raptors in flight," said Chip Darmstadt, NBNC Director. "This year, we decided to focus on something that is near and dear to many staff here at VINS. A love of dragonflies, butterflies and even moths! We hope this event will be the first of its kind in Vermont, a fun way to dabble into the world of bugs, no matter how wild you are about them."

Some of the nature center's year-round critters will also be in the spotlight, such as the docile Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches and the common millipede. This event will go on rain or shine! The First Annual Bug Fest is from 10 am to 3 pm.

Tickets are $6 VINS member adult, $7 nonmember adult; $4 VINS member child, $5 nonmember child; $12 VINS family, $15 nonmember family. There will be lunch on sale as well as a sale in the NBNC Gift Shop, with everything from insect field guides to butterfly nets. For more information or advance tickets, call 802-229-6206.