Michael Ulyshen
Southern Research Station
My favorite science experience was collecting insects in French Guiana while I was in graduate school. Grench Guiana is a small South American country to the north of Brazil. To attract insects at night, we set up bright lights on remote roads surrounded by rainforest. An unbelievable number and variety of insects were drawn to the light, including Titanus giganteus, which is considered the largest beetle species in the world!
My most memorable experience was when the noisy generator, which was powering our lights, ran out of gas. My ability to see insects (or anything else!) was suddenly replaced by the ability to hear the forest. I could hear the flapping sounds of countless bats as they flew around e to catch the insects that had been attracted by the light.
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