Blog4NIW

Duncan is currently reading for his MSc in Applied Entomology at Imperial College, University of London, at Silwood Park. However, he is mainly based in the UK’s West Country, where he is conducting his field studies in partnership with the Devon Wildlife Trust. He is looking at the impacts of different management regimes on soil insects and mesofauna at the Dunsdon Farm National Nature Reserve. He is also involved in outreach events with the public and schools in the Plymouth area – so keep an eye out for him at bug hunts and seaside safaris! He has been a zoologist since he was knee-high, when he kept a jar of woodlice in his room, and has been collecting insects and other arthropods in one form or another for most of his life – in a collection or a menagerie, or as photos. Apart from the focus of his current studies on the fauna of grassland at Dunsdon, his other entomological interests include the study of flies (Diptera). He also has a soft spot for springtails (Collembola), though these are no longer classified by most taxonomists as insects, but as a parallel class of hexapods (six-legged arthropods) that may be even more ancient in origin than the insects. Duncan is one of the Royal Entomological Society’s trio of Post-Graduate Representatives who work to put the younger generation of entomological researchers in touch with each other and with senior researchers, and to involve them in the activities of the Society.

Click here to read Duncan’s blog.

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