Entomology Contest 2015

Up before the crack of dawn...the boys were pumped and ready to go...they studied along the way.

This was Henry's first year in the senior division and he joined the team at the last minute to make sure Sean's group would have enough members to compete.  He had not had a lot of time to study and he really was concerned.  I was very proud of him for volunteering to participate as this is really not his project.

We arrived and the contest went quickly once it started.  Most of the youth were out within 30 minutes.  Henry lingered trying to remember as many insects as possible.  Sean did a good job and was confident when he came out of the testing room.

The teams must identify insects...by common name and order.  Then they must determine where the insects are most often located and if they are beneficial or pests.  Then there is a written portion of the test for general knowledge of insects.  The seniors must answer 100 questions all together.

The youth then had about an hour to keep busy...it was a great day for insect discoveries.  It all started with the dead tree in the big open courtyard.  The youth found termites and other insects in the dying tree.

That jump started the hunt.  Several in the group brought their collection tools and began looking in all the normal locations.  Here are a few of their finds:

After all the fun, the results were in and the group did a great job.  Ms. Molly said it was the first time she has known all of her participants taking home some type of ribbon...individual or team.  Everyone went away with smiles!

Our Seniors won 2nd in the team division and are headed to the state competition in June!  And as individuals, we had:

Nicolas – 3rd individual
Sean – 4th individual
Henry – 5th individual

I have to also send a congratulations to the Wilson County team...great job!  We look forward to seeing you at the competition in June.  Also, I was so happy to see you recognize your mascot...we should always be ready to welcome in the next generation of budding entomologists!  So sweet!

Then our Intermediate Teams took:
2nd Place Team – Ian, Jack, Nicolas
3rd Place Team – Hannah, Mack, Brian

Intermediate Individuals:
Hannah – 1st
Jack – 2nd  (who competed as an intermediate at the last minute...way to go!)
Nicolas – 4th

We did not have a junior team this year...but we have some amazing young beginners who did a great job!

Elina – 1st place (with a perfect score!  She actually tied with another individual...had to identify 5 more insects and won first place do to her amazing spelling of these insects!  Not bad for her first year in the contest!)
William – 4th place (with a near perfect score!-He left before I could get a good picture!)

We are so proud of all the participants...the scores were very close...everyone did an amazing job!

And for those who did not compete and waited patiently...we thank you....here are some photos of them patiently waiting throughout the morning!