Jeweled Cockroach Blattodea luminus
Fireflies, insects and other arthropods often kept as curiosities and pets, have been used as living jewelry for hundreds, if not thousands of years. The ancient Egyptian featured the scarab beetle prominently upon jewelry and even regarded it as scared, as they did many other animals. Insects and arthropods have been subjects in art and literature since ancient man drew and pecked pictures upon rocks. I have on occasion marveled at such ancient drawings, discovering for myself a giant centipede upon a high canyon wall in Utah produced by the Anasazi, the ancient ones. In modern times insects and other arthropods have found their way onto the silver screen and commercials. This has been enabled in large part by the development of computer aided design, animation and puppetry. Science fiction and fantasy has turned insects into monsters, beginning with H. G. Well's classic and The Food of the Gods to the shocking Hollywood thriller The Fly (1958) with a remake in 1986 which I also enjoyed. Without a doubt insects and arthropod stimulate the imagination, arouse the emotions and captivate the human spirit.
I have been fascinated by insects and their behavior since I was a young child. I have many memories which involve insects. When but a toddler, my eldest brother, who beat and bullied all his siblings until we were teenagers, left me stranded in a wooded area and told me to stay put. Yet instead of being afraid I looked around me and saw some butterflies which seemed to shine and sparkle in the sunlight streaming down through the tree-top canopy. I followed the butterflies and they guided me safely out of the wood, home. It was quite a remarkable experience, one I never forgot, as if I had been led by angles to safety.
When I was but seven year old my father, Leonard P. Lynch, an officer in the US Army, was stationed in Orleans, France. I would go on short hikes along the Loire River and developed an early interests in observing small animals such as snails, insects, lizards and fish. I would collect honey bees in a jar as they went from flower to flower drinking nectar, then sit and watch them before letting them go. On one occasion I wondered if a bee would really sting me if I just held it gently cupped in my hand. Yes, it did and I never made that mistake again!
In the future when I wanted to keep close company with any insects I was sure to learn which were safe to hold and which might deliver a painful, venomous sting or bite. Prior to being stationed in France, my father had duty in New Orleans, Louisiana. Our lawn was covered with red clay mounds built by fire ants. I quickly learned that fire ants were to be avoided, as I found myself standing in a mound which had just been leveled by a lawn mower. I think perhaps I ended up standing in that mound of ants because of my eldest brother, the same one who deserted me and left me alone in the woods when we lived in Seattle, Washington. The result was thousands of angry fire ants crawling up my legs and stinging. As I cried out in terror my father rushed over, swooped me off the grown and saved me from the stinging fire ants. He was my hero from that day on and I was surely lucky to have such loving and caring parents.
Needless to say my eldest brother and I did not enjoy a fond relationship after the experience with the fire arts. I was but a toddler and he had already tried to kill me twice! I realized something was very wrong with Greg; not normal, sick! So I stayed away from him. I have a great, close and loving relationship with my other two brothers, Stephen and Larry. Even though Larry had mental retardation, he knew how to love. In fact, perhaps one of the reasons I am able to explain evernts so well, to teach and inform so well, is because I spent much time with Larry teaching him how do many of the same things I would learn in school or discover for myself. Certainly one of the reasons I may have spent more time with insects than with my eldest brother, Greg, is because even though they might sting, they were not malicious; whereas Greg beat and bullied his brothers to cause them to submit to his will. When I was but seven years old, Greg lifted me up and threw me into a big patch of stinging nettles! I was wearing shorts without a top and cried out in agony. Greg knew that I was especially allergic to stinging nettles as we had gone by the before and he had me touch one to see what would happen. Knowing I reacted extremly badly to stinging nettles, Greg threw me into those plants. I suppose he was trying to kill me as I certainly felt like I was going to die!
I remained keenly aware and interested in insects as I grew older, remaining quite aware that one must learn which insects are beneficial as opposed to those that may cause hurt or harm. Also I was keenly aware of poisonous plants, thanks to Greg throwing me into the stinging nettles patch. I also learned to draw, having been motivated by my dear brother, Stephen, and would often sketch themes from popular movies such as Moby Dick. Stephen and I were very close and shared a deep, loving bond. Also my father gave me a camera when I was seven years old and I've been taking photographs ever since. This combined interest in art, photography and observing and studying nature has been a life long passion and brought me to explore the applications of art and photography as relates to insects and other arthropods, their adoration and how humanity has exploited insects and arthropods throughout history.
Perhaps making jewelry to represent most admired or highly regarded insects is one of the first ways they were exploited (or used to exploit people). Certainly the ancient Egyptians observed scarab beetles. They must have been aware that these large beetles rolled balls of dung and buried them. Perhaps they watched as the beetles which flew out of the sky and were attracted to dung, proceeded to roll it into balls which they buried. Perhaps the early Egyptians even marked where the dung piles had been and returned latter to discover magic, hallucinatory mushrooms growing in those very spots. Eating these perhaps the ancient Egyptians may have had visions, hallucinations, which they explained to themselves as seeing the dead or life beyond life, the afterlife. This may have been how religion originated in ancient Egypt and why pyramids were build, given this was a way to transport one's spirit to the afterlife. Indeed, if you examine jewelry and hieroglyphics which feature the sacred scarab beetle, it is the central connection between the sun and what resembles a mushroom, highly suggesting that the ancient Egyptians were aware of a connection between God or the after life, scarab beetles and mushrooms. Thus the adoration of dung beetles and their high regard by the ancient Egyptians may be the singular key which explains their whole Book of the Dead belief system in a life after life, in a God or connection between the living and whatever exists beyond.
I formulated this theory to explain for myself why the ancient Egyptians regarded scarabs as sacred beetles. There may be no truth to this hypothesis; it is not one easily tested. Yet there were scarab beetles in ancient Egypt and there is a variety of psychedelic mushroom in the middle east which causes hallucinations. This was the subject of The Sacred Mushroom and The Cross, in which it was postulated that the origins of Judeo-Christian religion may relate to the usage of hallucinogenic mushrooms by the ancient peoples in the mid-east. So perhaps the ancient Egyptians were among those who drank magic mushroom soups or brews that they might "see God!" And perhaps, thinking that scarab beetles brought the mushrooms from the sky, from the sun, this is why scarabs were regarded as sacred beetles. If so it is one of the most profound examples of how insects have influenced human history, resulting eventually in the formation of a religion and a belief system that put masses of people to work building great pyramids and monuments, giving much of their entire lives over to please their Pharaoh masters whom had been deluded by hallucinogenic mushrooms to believe that scarab beetles had been sent by God and given them insight to life after life, that they were the chosen, and all should bow and kneel to the Pharaoh, man made God.
The origins of insect adoration are lost in time. We can only make educated guesses as I have done, as to why ancient people regarded insects such as the scarab beetle, as sacred. But for whatever reason, insects and other arthropods seem to strike a chord in the human psyche. Some people have insect or spider phobias. Just as I experienced the sting of bees or fireants as a child, this is an experience other have had a children. My response was not of fear, but of curiosity, to learn everything I could about these fascinating creatures which could cause burning pain. Yet others are afraid of creepy, crawly critters. This may be learned behavior or deeply engrained in our make up as human being. Insects are just so different, so strange, so bizarre, so remarkable, indeed, so alien, that we can not help be aroused emotionally by insects and other arthropods.
Because there is an emotional response when people see, hear or sense insects, this is probably why jewelry featuring insects has existed for thousands of years. In fact, in some cultures live insects have been used for body adoration in one form or another for ages. Certainly silk, which comes from the silkworm, an insect larvae, is a form of adoration directly attributed to insects; one which has also resulted in the creation of a whole industry, the oldest, most successful insect rearing based industry in history. Next to the adoration of insects on jewelry, the silk industry is a primary example of how we humans have exploited insects to our great profit.
The adoration of insects and other arthropods through the actual wearing and/or display of live insects is somewhat of a lost art perhaps due to the phobias associated with insects and arthropods or the fact that it is just not too smart to put bees, wasps, spiders or scorpions in your hair or on your body. Also many adults insects do not live for long periods. If you try wearing a firefly it may expire within a day or two unless you feed it sugar water between outings. Cockroaches can live much longer which I will explain in greater detail below. Generally, insect jewelry is simply preferred to the real creatures, and is more profitable, especially when made of precious metals and adorned with precious stones.
In large part due to the advent and proliferation of artificial jewelry, usage of real live insects and other arthropods for body adoration has become uncommon. Also, killed insects and arthropods are used more frequently as jewelry than are live specimens. As I said, part of the reason for this may simply be that our culture does not highly regard insects, is often paranoid or repulsed by insects, often without justification. Yet with the advent of the Internet and numerous pop clicks and subcultures springing up everywhere, there is a renewed interest in such forms of body adoration as body piercing, body tattooing and even the usage of live insects for body adoration.
In order to increase people's general awareness about insects, especially fireflies and other beetles, as well as other insects like cockroaches and crickets, I am going to explore and present various methods for using live insects and body ornamentation and adoration. This may be of special appeal to those who love nature, who want to make an expression of their unique, eccentric selves, or who simply want to get attention, arouse curiosity and be the talk of the town. I can assure you, in most of society and many groups you will raise eyebrows wearing a firefly or cockroach as a pet!
I learned how to thether an insect from my father when I was just a young boy. It is an experience I never forgot. I was living on Madison Avenue in Montgomery, Alabama at the time. This was just prior to my father being stationed to South Korea. It was early summer and my father had caught a brightly iridescent and colorful June beetle. June beetles are large, colorful beetles, members of the Scarabaeidae family, the very same family of beetles that the ancient Egyptian use to worship. After catching this large, greenish June beetle, my father procured some thread from my mother's sowing kit and tied this to the June beetle's leg, then letting it fly around in circles in the backyard, making a loud characteristic buzzzzzzzz, to my astonishment and amazement! I think this is something he learned how to do while stationed in the Philippines during the Second World War. Beetles were played with like toys by some Filipino children, often being their only form of entertainment beyond ball, rope or stick or home-made doll, and beetles are still regarded as toys by children in some parts of the world.
That is basically all you need to do to keep beetles as pets; tether them by a thread. There are many very thin threads; silk in my opinion is the best for insect tethering. Silk is a natural material produced by silkworm larvae when they spin their cocoons to pupate; it is very light weight and perfect for tethering insects. To harvest silk, the cocoons which silkworms make prior to pupation are boiled in hot water. This kills the pupae inside and removes the thick outer layer of sericin resulting in very shiny, glossy threads. Then the end of the silk thread is located and unwound from the cocoon onto a reel. Several threads may be wound together to make a thicker, stronger piece of silk thread for weaving fabrics. For the purpose of tethering insects silk thread is ideal. Of course you may also use cotton or nylon threads or even very light fishing line. A very long strand of human hair also makes a nice thether should you be a maiden so fair and blessed as to possess this quality of adoration.
Threads may be tied to a large beetles leg, as in the case of a June beetle; or even tied between their thorax and abdominal segment. But a better method is to use a tiny drop of super glue and attach the thread to the thorax. Then the beetle or other insect may be walked as upon a leash, just as you might your dog.
In order to wear live insects as jewelry you can attach the other end of the thread to a safety pen held to your clothing; a bobby pen can be used to secure insects on short thethers worn upon your hair, hats or bonnets. With a short thread or even the insect is then free to walk and craw upon you. This makes an attractive live body ornamentation when the insects are worn on lapels, around the neck or even in the hair of a tropical maiden. Indeed, with a few fireflies or other live and colorful beetles in you hair you will be the talk of the party!
I highly recommend fireflies for ornamentation. Adult males may be collected in the summer when they are active. You can maintain your adult firefly for 10 to 30 days by feeding it dilute sugar water or dilute honey water, the later which they really love! When not wearing your firefly keep it is a closed jar with paper tower or filter paper (coffee filters work great for this purpose and are readily available at grocery stores) that is moistened with this feeding solution. You can also keep fireflies on just water, but they do not live as long as those fed dilute sugar water. Generally most beetles and insects need to be kept in a jar with moist paper towel in order to avoid their desiccation and early expiration.
Fireflies are great for body ornamentation, especially at evening parties or gathering, because fireflies will flash and attract attention. Imagine yourself with a head full of flashing fireflies! You will literally turn everyone on at any party or gathering and be the talk of the town for every! No one will every forget your bold and bizarre expression!
There are two types of fireflies that are most appropriate for body ornamentation: Photinus pyralis and Photuris. P. pyralis is especially recommended as these are very large fireflies measuring 12 mm to 18 mm in length. Plus P. pyralis is a very common firefly. You can find P. pyralis in most states east of the Mississippi river. They are most abundant between the end of May and the first few weeks of June; but some specimens can be found later in the season in some localities.
P. pyralis is easy to recognize in the yards, fields and meadows of suburbia. This rather robust firefly becomes active during twilight. The males will fly about flashing and blinking in a "J" or dipping flight pattern, in search of a female, flashing once about each 5 - 7 seconds, with a faster rate of flash on very warm evenings. The females which are perched upon vegetation will reply to a male flash after a delay of about 2 seconds. If you learn how to recognize this flight pattern than you can go out and collect your very own pet firefly. Of course it will expire within 10 to 30 days, so do not get too fond of your firefly! :-)
Photuris is a much more active and aggressive firefly. These wild beasts have even been known to prey and feast upon P. pyralis. Plus Photuris often flashes in very rapid succession at the slightest disturbance. Hence Photuris makes a very attractive body ornaments, especially when worn in the hair. The only draw back is that Photuris may be hard to find in some area. Also they are very rapid fliers and so can be difficult to capture. When hunting for Photuris just look for fast flying fireflies streaking through the night blinking in rapid pulses like a firefly on speed! That's very likely Photuris dashing blissfully across the meadow. Catch it if you can!
Always when attaching a thread to fireflies, glue it to their pronotrum, the large shield like structure which covers their head. Once you have tethered a firefly by its pronotrum it is like a woman in a chastity belt, submissive to your every command and demand, off limits to all flirting fireflies, your's and only your's, to flash and blink and satisfy your every heart's desire. Indeed, a head of hair ornamented with flashing fireflies might just attract you a mate, bring you a lover, if not for but a night, perhaps longer, even leading to marriage and a lifetime of deepest, most passionate romance.
There is power and magic, indeed, in the allure of living light used as body ornamentation. That may be one reasons it is shunned upon in some subcultures. Even regular jewelry or body piercing is shunned upon by many people, especially the devoutly faithful who may superstitiously regard ornamenting your body as sinful, ungodly, provocative, perverse, perverted and far from divine! Yet there is nothing wrong with decorating your body any more than it is sinful to decorate a tree at Christmas time.
The magic and power of body ornamenting is all psychological, often involving subconscious response as in the case of subliminal advertising. Indeed, you may regard ornamenting your body with live insects as a form of ultimate subliminal seduction. What could be more arousing than a lovely maiden with a head full of flashing organic, living lights that call out, "Come closer! Mate with me!" It's an allure fireflies discovered through millions of years of evolution; one we humans might seek to emulate while in search of a mate or just a wild and crazy night of erotic adventure and love making!
Fireflies will expire in short order; then they will dry up, become brittle and of little uses as jewelry. They can be imbedded in plastic to make they last essentially forever. But if you are going to wear a dead insect you might as well wear artificial jewelry with diamonds and rubies made to emulate an insect. Butterfly and beetle jewelry, broaches, necklaces and earrings are especially popular. In fact, you can find just about any type of insect which has been made into jewelry. Or you can alway get an I Love Fireflies T-shirt.
One of my passions is the creation of insect gifts and apparel. I take photographs of insects or make drawings. Then using computer aided designs technology I make graphic designs often combined with slogans, and market these upon a variety of gifts and apparel. As an artist and craftsmen I have also made jewelry in the form of insects, especially earrings. But what seems to be most popular is my firefly creations which are known around the world to the delight and young and old alike. You can see them in the Firefly Gallery along with much of my other work in the Naturalist Gallery on-line at http://www.cafepress.com/bytelandart/531468.
Fireflies are by no means the only insect appropriate for body adoration. Many other insects may be thethered to the body or hair. I already mentioned June beetles. These large, iridescent, brightly colored scarab beetles make a wonderful body decoration. As larvae they live under the ground and eat roots, occasionally being uncovered while doing yard or garden work. The large white grubs might even make a tasty morsel for those interested in cooking and eating insects both as a source of protein and exotic dish. Some expensive restaurants are now even featuring insects, roasted and fried, to high class customers who can afford to dish out the mega bucks being charged for what is basically just chocolate covered ants, crickets or grasshoppers.
There are many colorful beetles that you may use to accent your wardrobe. This includes everything from large rhinoceros, horned dung beetles to spotted, bright red ladybird beetles. Large, colorful ground beetle and tiger beetles are very beautiful when worn on the lapel or in the hair; just be careful as tiger beetles have very sharp mandibles and can bite!
Patriotica newyorkusThis design entitled Patriotica newyorkus is a humorous play upon the fact that after 9-11 even the cockroaches are patriotic. This design features an American cockroach that has evolved to display an American flag upon its elytra. Around the boarder of the design is inscribed "After 9-11 even the cockroaches are patriotic - God bless America! - Patriotica newyorkus - American Cockroaches." |
Please note that this design is intended to express how profound has been the surge in American patriotism since 9-11 and in no way is intended to disparage the American flag, given it is the view of the artist that cockroaches are God's creation and are miracles and wonders of life which have a purpose and place in nature.
Available on T-shirts, sweatshirts, jerseys, mugs, caps, tote bags and other quality items through CafePress. |
One of my favorite insects to use in body adoration and thethering is the all American cockroach! You can paint and decorate the wings of the American cockroach to make very glittery, colorful live jewelry. Just use soft, red sable brushes and let your imagination run wild. To make it easier to paint live cockroaches you may chill them down by placing them in ice water; then after they become inactive you may keep them cool by placing them upon a metal plate, dish or can that is kept cold with ice (a better way to knock out insects is to use C02 gas, but most people do not have access to this in their homes). This gives you plenty of time to attach a thether and to also quickly paint their outer wing covers. Adding sparkles or glitter is a way to quickly turn a cockroach into live jewelry guaranteed to get a rise and turn eyes your way at any party or gathering, especially church socials and tea parties where cockroaches are generally shunned upon, at least when they appear suddenly out of vents, from under tables or, distastefully in a salad or pasta. However, thethered pet cockroaches that have been decorated generally are acceptable in some quarters, once people get use to the idea and realize the cockroaches are not going to crawl all over them or get into their soup, salad or cocktails.
Among cockroaches perhaps the most awe inspiring is the Madagascar hissing cockroach. This is an exotic species that can sometimes by purchased at pet shops or acquired through dealers. These large, flightless cockroaches need to be thethered with a strong thread or piece of fishing line. Because they will hiss when disturbed they will attract attention. You might even use them as a form of birth control given some men are very turned off by hissing cockroaches. They just are not what you imagine your mate or bride to be wearing to the prom or ball. However, I guarantee that a hissing cockroach will get you stares, and that if you are worried about impregnation, the hissing cockroach is almost as good of a body guard as a German Shepherd or Doberman Pincher. For my part I prefer a good watch dog or guard dog, but if your are looking for a cheap, disposable body guard, one that you can squish or squash after the party or even put in some grotesque dudes drink who won't stop hitting on you, then you may want to thether a Madagascar hissing cockroach to your blouse next time you go to a pick up bar. :-)
Among the most acceptable and adorable forms of living jewelry is the cricket. Crickets can be easily purchased at a bait shop and thethered by a thread attached to their thorax. You can paint them red with nail polish, sprinkling on glitter. If carefully painted so as not to seal the wings together, painted crickets will retain the ability to sing and chirp. Also crickets and cockroaches can be maintained by keeping them in jars with moist sand and feeding them dog food kibbles. Crickets love kibbles so much that you can soon get an entire colony of them going in your home or apartment. Female crickets will lay hundreds of eggs in soil which hatch out to produce nymphs that devour kibbles or other vegetables you may feed them. Just be sure the food is fresh and does not contain preservatives which may kill the young crickets. If you raise and keep crickets in their adult stage they can even provide chirping music and bring you to feel that you are close to nature.
It may be easy to find common insects like crickets, or you can just cop-out and buy them from a bait shop. But what about other insects; where do you find them? As I mentioned, some insects like giant Madagascar hissing cockroaches may be purchased through pet shops or dealers. Of course the best place to find insects is EVERYWHERE! Yes, insects are literally everywhere. Some New York apartments have more cockroaches than you can count in a life-time (primarily as they keep reproducing at such an alarming rate that you will surely exhaust yourself and expire before you can complete your tally). Now I'm not saying New York has any more cockroaches than other metropolitan areas; cockroaches are very thrifty critters, have spread all around the world and are more likely than not in your house or apartment! So just look around and you can probably find some cockroaches to wear to your next ball right under the kitchen sink; just take a peak when the hour reaches mid-night.
Indeed, insects are everywhere. You need only an insect net and some quart jars to begin collecting you six-legged pets. If you are interested in beetles you can often find them at night having been attracted to the artificial glow of street lamps. In Florida you can often find large giant water bugs under street lamps. These huge water bugs can give you a very bad bite so must be handled carefully. I do NOT recommend wearing them as live jewelry, but they do make a nice broach well when killed and painted. One of the tricks to making a broach out of a killed insect is to use a clear glue to adhere the legs and antennae close to the body so they do not fall off when they become brittle. Also paint the entire insect with clear shellac so that it will not become food for other tiny insects. I also prefer to cure insects by soaking them in vinegar or brine water prior to drying them out. This essentially embalms the insect so that it preserves better. After an insect is dried you can then dip it in shellac or other clear liquid sealants such as polyurethane. Then hang the insects up to dry. Two or three coating may be used to give the insect extra endurance. Insects can be painted and decorated with glitter. You can even glue tiny artificial gem stones on them to make very beautiful earrings and broaches. In the case of delicate insects they may be glued to a broach clip available at art and craft shops. You can also get pierced earring studs or hooks which can be used to make very adorable and light weight earrings from small insects like ladybird beetles. It is also possible to embed insects in Lucite acrylic plastic resin, a clear polyethylene casting resin, and then use them for everything from jewelry to key rings, paperweights, desktop decor, paper weights and teaching exhibits. Small dried insects may be embedded in plastic or insects may be processed to remove water and hence form a better bond between their exoskeleton and the plastic. Basically the process involves first soaking the insects in reagents (denatured alcohol or 70%-95% ethanol) to remove water from their bodies, then embedding them in plastic; a hardening catalyst is added which causes the clear liquid resin to harden into a solid form that can be used to make jewelry or other creative insect crafts. Generally those companies, like Delvie's Plastics Inc, who supply the reagents, plastics and molds will provide you with basic instructions; then you can learn the process and prefect it over through trial and error and much practice.
With an insect net you should be able to collect many insects. Keep in mind that adult insects often have a rather short lifetime. So you should use them as live jewelry quickly. Exceptions are insects like crickets or cockroaches which you can actually maintain in jars as pets for rather long periods. If you feed crickets and cockroaches and give them water, they can live very well in captivity. Also, insects like crickets maintained for many generations in captivity are generally very clean and free of disease. I would not say that of New York cockroaches so wearing one of them as jewelry may seem disgusting to many people, especially if you already are prejudice toward Yankees! :-)
Cockroaches and grasshopper can make a mess; their feces is often dark brown or black and can stain expensive clothing; but it washes out of hair easy enough and if you really want to shock people, what better way than to clothing a giant Madagascar hissing cockroach, Gromphadorhina portentosa to your hair at the next celebrity event which you attend.
If you are a celebrity and want to get some publicity, adorning your body with a Madagascar hissing cockroach is a great way to do it. Wearing one of these jeweled Coleoptera to the opera or grand ball is a guaranteed way to get yourself on the cover of all the tabloids and have the paparazzi flocking around you like flies to dung, trying to get a close up of your little creepy crawly friend. What makes them really go nuts in Hollywood is if you name your cockroach something like Bush, McCain, Hillary or Obama, depending on which political candidate or elected official you most want to insult. These giant Madagascar cockroaches are especially appealing when decorated with lead glass Swarovski crystals to Dwarves and wear as a necklace or broaches and can command a hefty price, as much as $850! What better way to add value to your pet hissing cockroaches -- and not a bad one either when you consider Madagascar hissing cockroaches can live up to five years. When they expire you just remove the crystals and glue them on a new pet cockroach.
Many beetles make great pets (or at least good conversation pieces) if you feed them what they like to keep them happy. I have a dung beetle that named Reese, after Reese McKinney, Jr., a holier-than-thou judge who sits upon the Montgomery County probate court in Montgomery, Alabama, the same city where Rosa Parks was arrested when she refused to sit at the back of a city bus. Reese is a very bright dung beetle as dung beetles go, and rolls his balls of dung with great expertise and precision. Reese rolled one such ball of dung to prevent the transfer of my dear mother from a nursing home which was exploiting her, financially raping and robbing her blind, thus imprisoning my dear elderly mother in a nursing home for the duration of her life, where in a small, noisy, concrete block room number 13 she now waits to die; he rolled another ball of dung to try to have me committed to a mental institution (guess Reese did not like my passionate nature to fight for and defend the rights of helpless people); and, Reese rolled a third ball of dung when he appointed greedy lawyers as the guardian/conservator of my dear mother, insuring that she would remain a virtual prisoner of the State of Alabama until that fateful day she meets her maker and the great, sacred dung beetle in the sky. When Reese dies, God bless his soul, I plan to flush him down the toilet rather than mount him or make jewelry, as just thinking about the corruption in Alabama probate courts makes me want to puke!
It may seem odd to name a dung beetle Reese; indeed, it is peculiar, perhaps to name any insects. But the name was well picked as Reese is not a large, sacred dung beetle like those worshipped in ancient Egypt; rather, Reese is a small, tiny black dung beetle. I keep him in a jar and feed him my dog's dooh. Actually Reese is not just one dung beetle but has gone through several generations now. There has been a Reese I, a Reese II, a Reese III, ... etc. When the real Reese ran for re-election to the probate court as a Republican in Montgomery, Alabama, I was probably the only one to make a protest. I made "Ditch Reese" T-shirts and bumper stickers and am still marketing these to call for his immediate resignation, given that he was re-elected. Obviously the majority people just vote a straight Republican ticket in Montgomery, Alabama, a majority conservative, pro-Bush community. So you can be a dung beetle and roll balls of dung with the elderly and helpless inside, with those who cannot speak out for themselves and protest; you can treat people like balls of dung rolled by dung beetles, and bury them away beneath the soil, inside nursing homes and institutions where no one can see or hear them, where no one will know or care what is done to them. Reese tried to do that to me, to bury me like a ball of dung in a mental institution because I dared defend and stand up for my dear brother and my dear mother against those who sought to gain power and control over their lives. So I have a very good reason for naming my tiny black dung beetles Reese, given the corruption, utter disgrace, dishonor and indignity done to my family. For you see, the courts in Alabama have a long history of corruption dating at least as far back as when slaver was legal and you buy and sell people like cattle.
Using insects for political protest or shock and awe is not my own invention. It is simply a technique, well thought out and planned, an artistic technique that is much used in Hollywood. Many movies have capitalized on insects, turning them into monsters, creating half-human, half-insect flies or insect-like aliens. The list of Hollywood blockbusters which used monstrous insects is very long. One of my favorites was The Fly in which a scientist creates a teleportation machine and a fly gets inside, resulting in a morphing together of the man and fly when he emerges from the machine. I was heart wrenching drama and drew much critical review.
The appearance of other insects in movies has been on the rise, especially as computer animation and technology has enhanced the special effects abilities of producers. Also there has been a growth in the exotic insect business, such that insects are being reared and marketed for usage in movies, given that is one market where insects are often in high demand and which pays a good royalty for its six-legged actors, actresses and bug handlers. Some of the most recent stars have included Madagascar hissing cockroaches, spiders and of course fireflies. Disney Studios has even produced some great animated films using humanized muppets or computer graphics and animation combined with the real voices of famous actors and actresses to help popularize the movies.
When you can say that Adam Bee was played through the voice over of Matthew Broderick, you get big box office draw. In this movie the voice of Chris Rock was used for Mooseblood the Mosquito with that of Megan Mullally playing The Queen, and Eddie Izzard doing the voice of Bee Army General. Also Oprah Winfrey played "The Judge" in Bee Movie that with a cast like that box office sales went through the roof! Also Oprah Winfrey played Gussy the Goose in the comedy-drama Charlotte’s Web, which also featured a spider, Charlotte, voiced by none other that Julia Roberts.
Celebrities draw people to the box office like flies to dung, even when it is just their voice that is used to attract attention, and what better way to do that than make insects speak with the most famous voices on the silver screen or that one-eyed monster we none can resist and have become addicted to, if not subliminally seduced by, compelled to watch literally from the moment we open our eyes, aka, the television and commercially sponsored programming. Featuring insects, particularly fireflies, butterflies and honey bees, has now become a way to subliminally seduce viewers to purchase associated products. We have luna moths hypnotically bringing sleep to insomniacs as prescription medications, with God only knows what side effects, is being peddled on the tube. Animated bees or computer graphic fireflies are peddling air freshener and career building corporations. The 2008 Super Bowl ad for CareerBuilder.com featured a day dreaming, wishful thinking, humanized firefly, being devoured by a window dangling spider. The message was that you can't get a job by just wishing for it; that you need to get the help of a head hunter, or you are going to be eatten by your competition.
It is interesting how in Hollywood, when a positive emotional response is desired, insects are often given human-like eyes and mouth parts as well as arms and legs to make them acceptable to children and a family audience; turning them from creatures often associated with fear and paranoia into objects of love and heroism, as in the Bee Movie. Then these gentle insect characters which have helped producers rake in millions of dollars at the box office are used to subliminally seduce consumers through commercial advertising. Amazingly we humans may not be as bright as we think we are, for to let ourselves by subliminally seduced by animated insect characters is not what I consider very bright! Of course big corporate sponsors are laughing all the way to the bank at how easy it was to make their fortunes from the adoration of insects in the media, perhaps the most profound example of how insects are glamorized and capitalized upon by their silver screen and video slave masters. But should the desire of Hollywood be to shock and awe, to appeal to one's fear of arthropods, then humans are turned into monsters with the head of flies or other arthropods. Do you get the feeling when you watch such films that you are being manipulated, being exploited? Indeed, that is part of the magic and power of the media, so if you do not wish to be the firefly puppet on a string devoured by corporate spider monsters, perhaps you should question everything you see on television, especially if it is a commercial with insects or other arthropods which have deep, psychological appeal and ability to influence human behavior.
Of course Hollywood is not the only one to see opportunity come knock-knock-knocking at the door when the firefly flashes to attract attention and create a feeling of love and romance, much as is done when candles are lit while dining. With the advent of the LED (light emitting diode) which is easily electronically controlled to simulate the natural flash patters of fireflies in courtship, some ingenious entrepreneurs have started a company called LEDSFX. This company uses LEDs to simulate fireflies and create artificial public displays and micro environments to delight and entertain the public, adding a feeling of charm to the setting. These artificial firefly displays are being used to create a romantic, relaxed setting in malls, offices and even the private homes of celebrities. This is probably one of the most innovative applications of simulated firefly displays to come on the market in recent years. It makes me wonder what became of the advice and consultation I freely gave when I was contacted some years ago with regard to how to make indoor firefly displays for a resort. I advised those who made inquiry to use LEDs and simulation, not real fireflies. Was someone listening?
There is, of course, an allure and fascination that comes from using real insects in body adoration that cannot be easily duplicated by using jewelry or other forms of simulation. Hence, if you want to use the real thing, you have to get live insects or arthropods. If you are lazy and don't want to hunt your own insects, you can now google insect pets on-line and find many sources for insects complete with instructions for how to care for your little six-legged lovies. Also you can often acquire insects at university entomology department which may have stock cultures or at agricultural experimental stations where insects are often reared in mass. You can also harvest a wide variety of insects at night using a UV lamp trap. If you want to collect live nocturnal insects, just harvest them when they are attracted to a UV lamp hung in front of a white sheet, fabric, piece of foam core board, or sheet of plastic. If you want to harvest dead nocturnal insects you can let them fall into a bucket or other vial of 70% alcohol set under the UV lamp. I often use such a FOAM CORE VEIN UV LIGHT TRAP that I designed and constructed from foam core board; this is a great way to sample the wide variety of insects that are active at night in any local. These traps may have two or four veins; or you can just mount a UV lamp upon a single flat board of foam core and use it to manually harvest live night flying insects if you want to department them to your body or hair. Below is a photograph of a two-vein UV lamp trap in use.
Remember, insects are live animal; they are very delicate creatures. So when you D.A. an insect to your body or in our hair, don't forget it is there. You could easily crush your six legged pet and end up with a crumpled mass of gooy antenna, tarsus, tibia, femur, elytra, venated wings and crushed exoskeloton. So when adorning your body with live insects, be careful and take care to not bring the early demise to your live jewelry. Be sure to caution your mate that they know you are wearing one of God's creatures and will take care to keep their little pinkies to themselves, at least until you are home and disrobe, putting your little six legged companion in its glass adobe for the rest of the night. Then will be time to relax and enjoy each others fondness, made ever more enchanting by the mystique of wearing living, breathing, flashing, chirping insects that bring out the wildest side of men, women and mates at play, in courtship, who live for love.
Keep in mind that a UV lamp trap will attract many different types of insects. Some, such as giant water bugs and wasps can bite or sting and should be handled carefully if collected alive. I do NOT recommend wearing live venomous insects or arthropods. I realize people are often foolish and can behave in risky fashion; that some people are thrill seekers or enjoy seekers behavior to freak other people out. This is especially common among teenagers. I've known teens to make up wild and outlandish stories just to get love and attention. But you really do NOT want to wear venomous insects or spiders as they could always bite or sting you or someone else. If you do enjoy keeping venomous insects or spiders as pets, not something I recommend, especially in homes with infants, children or such pets as dogs and cats, then at least learn how to properly and safely handle them. This is especially true if you have a fascination for such arthropods as the black widow spider, the brown recluse spider, tarantulas or scorpions. These are venomous arthropods and can cause serious or fatal bites, especially if you have a allergy to insect stings. Some people react very strongly even to a bee or wasp sting and such reactions can cause difficulty breathing and be fatal unless medical attention is received immediately. So DO NOT use live venomous insects or arthropods for body adoration or tarantulas and if you maintain venomous arthropods or other venomous small animals including frogs, toads, snakes or other venomous reptiles and amphibians, learn how to handle them properly and how to maintain them safely.
Also understand that I do NOT recommend the commercial harvesting from the natural environment of arthropods or other endangered species for usage in the pet trade or for making jewelry. This article is for usage by individuals only and is presented because only a relatively few people are interested in using live insects or other arthropods for body adoration and making. However, there are many other way insects are used and marketed. This includes everything from the manufacture of silk to the harvest of insects for food. Generally if insects are reared in captivity or for commercial purposes, as in the case of the silk industry, it is not going to harm natural populations of insects. Even in the case of the silk industry, mulberry trees used to feed silk worms are cultivated. In fact, the silk industry has such a long and vibrant history that almost a mutual relationship has developed between man and the silkworm caterpillar, Bombay mori.
It is almost as if insects have made slaves out of man, such that for at least five thousand years man has insured the silkworm's survival by becoming its farmer or cultivator. The same has occurred with other insects such as the honey bee. People the world over rear honey bees in apiaries; it is a industry which is also vital to the cultivation of may crops which depend upon honey bees to pollinate flowers. More and more insects are being mass reared for their applications as in biological control, often labor intensive tasks which can take over the lives of many people.
I had the opportunity to work for a small, fledging biological company in northern Florida. The goal was to rear house flies upon which parasitic wasps could then be reared. The wasps were released upon poultry farm to control flies. It was a very clever idea but one which took a lot of time and effort, especially when you are talking about maintaining insectaries with hundreds of vast of maggots feasting upon a mix of alfalfa, dried milk and dried eggs. The flies loved it as did the wasps; but I can't say I took great pleasure in churning those vast of millions upon millions of fly maggots. I was as a slave to the flies and to my employer who hardly paid what such effort was worth, a problem that is very wide spread in all areas of agriculture and insect rearing.
Any commercial mass rearing of plants or insects is generally labor intensive and can turn into a corrupt exploitation of people if one is not able to compensate them adequately for their labor and service. That is how slavery in America developed; growing cotton became more vital than human dignity or rights, such that people were harvested in Africa, shipped to America and sold into slavery that plantation owner might have a labor force to grow such corps as cotton or tobacco. Although slavery in America was ended with the Emancipation Proclamation, people are still being exploited all over the world to grow and harvest crops, to catch fish, even to rear insects. Given that I once worked as a virtual slave to a fly slave master, I know what such exploitation is like. People sometimes will do anything to live and survive. That does not mean their employers are justified; often the employers are motivated by a need to support their own families and to prosper. The problem arises when those they employ become as virtual slaves, being over worked and under paid.
There needs to be proper compensation and benefits paid to all people working in agriculture. This is especially true with respect to migrant farm workers. When I was rearing flies for the biological control industry, I was basically in the same position as a migrant farm worker; under paid, under housed and under compensated. It was not that my fly slave master wanted this; but rather, that there simply was not sufficient money to pay me what I deserved or that what monies there were, were prioritized to go to support the fly slave master's family and maintain the operation of the fly farm.
Exploitation of workers employed in the rearing of insects is a situation I am keenly aware of having experienced such exploitation; this is why I caution others not to turn the mass rearing of insects for profit into a form of slave labor and trade, a form of exploitation of poor and deprived people. Such industries can be developed and made profitable; but attention needs to be taken to preserve human dignity and provide decent, fair and just compensation with good salaries and benefits in any and all commercial enterprises. This is especially true in all agricultural industries as these are labor intensive industries which often require long hours of back breaking, strenuous labor. No matter how good the food, necessary or profitable the crop, a fair share of the profits need to be returned to those who invest their time, effort and labor into producing the crop. This is true be it wheat, corn, oranges, strawberries, cotton, tobacco, poultry, cows, dogs, cats, silkworms, honey bees or even flies and maggots one is producing. Always people must be the highest priority and well compensated for their labor; otherwise you have exploitation.
I no longer work rearing insects for a living; I stopped doing that years ago. But I still make art, I still use insects as a form of inspiration. I find insects and other arthropods to be fascinating creatures. On one hand we masters of the universe who call ourselves a superior species domesticate the silkworm and for thousands and thousands of years collect its silk, strands that is stretched end to end could probably reach the stars. Indeed, the annual production of silk could probably reach the sun and back enough times to wrap it in a true! Who is then the slave and who is the master? Have we as humans been put to work by the insects? Much of the food we produced becomes food for insects, not people. We humans are spending more and more time trying to produce more and more food to feed an exploding population, and a good portion of our effort is feeding insects! Where is the superior intelligence if we labor to mass rear flies and silkworms only to work ourselves to death? There is none. It is the insects who rule as they reproduce and evolve faster than we humans who take nine months to gestate and 20 years for a generation. In that time a house fly will have gone through approximately 400 generations. Who is going to evolve faster, the fly or man? Obviously the fly has the advantage here as do most insects. Of course because the design of the fly works just fine the way it is, there may be no rapid change. But should we foolish humans present an advantage, unknowingly to the fly, cockroach or any other insect that we rear and cultivate for our own selfish greed, look out! The vast quantities of individuals reared will insure our six-legged competitors will not miss their opportunity to become better flies or cockroaches than we are humans.
Although I do not rear insects for a living, I will upon occasion rear them to observe and study. Certainly I spent a quantity of time engaged in creative projects, producing art and photography which incorporates insects as subject matter. I market these upon gifts and apparel. Insects therefore are contributing to my survival and prosperity. Insects, especially pest insects or insects which serve as vectors for disease contribute to the survival and prosperity of many in the pest control industry. We humans develop chemicals to control insects, chemicals which can even kill us if we are not careful. So what's the score, who is winning the game, insects or humanity?
Where will the flies and cockroaches be in 10-thousand or 100-thousand years from now? Where will humanity be if it even exists at all. I see bioluminescent cockroaches and flies, perhaps having come into being through the genetic engineering of man, his attempt to create a more erotic, stimulating form of living jewelry. What could be more erotic than the Jeweled Cockroach Blattodea luminus? Indeed, I'd create and market such a cockroach if it were within my means. But for now I'll just dream and imagine. I have no doubt that he Jeweled Cockroach Blattodea luminus will appear, will be created in the future. Perhaps I will not live to ever see he Jeweled Cockroach Blattodea luminus, but I've seen enough fireflies and railroad worms to know the day will come when we, the almighty Gods of genetic engineering will create the Jeweled Cockroach Blattodea luminus. That will be a grand day indeed, an ultimate achievement for the cockroach, as we will have done for it what it could not have done for itself, become enlightened.
My eldest brother, Greg, certainly is NOT like me. In many respects were are exact opposites. I have a loving, caring nature. I love all people and all creatures great and small. I am curious and because I love others, I seek to stand up for others who are bullied, who are exploited. I respect the feelings of others and try to listen to others, to do as they wish, to respect their wishes and desires.
When my dear mother, La Faye S. Lynch, became ill and had to be hospitalized, only later to be found to have dementia, I endeavored to follower wishes and desire. She had to be rushed to the hospital during the middle of the night on a hot, August evening of 2003. She had become despondent and became unconscious. I thought she was dying so I said a prayer that her life be spared. I called paramedics and she was rushed to the emergency room at Jackson Hospital, in Montgomery, Alabama.
I follower my mother to the hospital and given I had been assigned as her attorney in fact in 1995, I had a copy of this document to show and then signed the necessary documents that her life might be saved. While waiting to be treated in the emergency room I noticed it was swarming with bottle flies. These large iridescent flies were landing upon my dear mother's legs. I was trying to fan them away. We waited for a doctors many hours. Finally he came and upon examining my mother found fly maggots upon her legs!
I was just as shocked as everyone else when maggots were discovered under the sheets upon my mother's legs. But unlike everyone else I knew where those maggots came from; they came from the flies that were in the emergency room. You see, bottle flies are attracted to the odor of open wounds and my mother's legs were in a septic condition. The bottle flies had been landing upon her legs for hours and laying live maggots beneath the sheet upon her legs. Bottle flies often deposit live maggots and/or their eggs hatch almost immediately.
Later people read the attending physicians report and assumed that I had not taken proper care of my dear mother, even though I was the one who had saved her life, by praying when she became unconscious, by calling 911, by getting her to the hospital, by approving that she may get blood transfusions and receive tube feeding. Even though my mother had hidden her condition from me, as she was elderly, had not been eating properly, would not go to the doctor or dentist for her check-ups and was wearing layers of cloths to hide her condition, some people assumed I was the one responsible for her diminished condition.
Only later was later found that my mother had dementia which explains why she was not eating properly or taking better care of herself. But the flies, you see, came from the hospital, not our home. There were no flies in our home. If a fly every happened to get inside our house my dog would snap it out of the air and devour it! So I know where those fly maggots that were on my mother came from -- they came from the emergency room at Jackson Hospital.
There was a hearing to determine who would be my mother's guardian/conservator. The presiding judge was Montgomery County Reese McKinney, Jr. My dear mother was not present at this hearing. Judge Reese made my dear mother a ward of the State of Alabama and appointed non-relative lawyers to be her guardian/conservator. Those lawyers then sued me in my mother's own name. I guess somehow they figured I had cause her illness, had infected her with flies and was somehow responsible for her dementia. Either that or they were just greedy. Only later learned that more might be going on than I was aware of with respect to this matter.
You see, I learned Judge Reese Mc Kinney, Jr. was on the Board of Directors at Jackson Hospital. Through his orders issued with respect to my dear mother, he prevented me from being able to file a law suit in her name against Jackson Hospital for malpractice; a law suit which may have also included Crowne Nursing Home, as this was the nursing home approved by and recommended by Jackson Hospital. So the judge got me out of the picture to prevent any possibility I might file legal claims in my mother's name against those who had done her wrong.
What happened to my dear mother was a real life horror story, one I did not author. It was other people acting in their own self and selfish interests who exploited my dear mother. They did not like the fact that I was responding as any most loving, caring son would, as her strongest advocate.
I have continued the fight by telling the truth, by letting everyone know who will listen that my dear mother was financially raped and robbed by corrupt judges, lawyers and for-profit nursing home administrators -- even by other family members who help orchestrate her exploitation. What happened to my mother I sense have learned has happened to many others. There is a multi-billion dollar industry which is established in many states across our great nation designed to exploit the elderly. It works by isolating them from their loving and caring family members through a process that involves creating legal disputes and gangsters style judges, lawyers and nursing home administrators and operators who profit enormously by exploiting the elderly. This is the worse form of corruption since slaver was legal; people are being deprived of their rights, dignity and respect, treated like property and made virtual slaves so others may have power and control of their income, assets and property. It is a horror story worse than any fictional dramas about insects, arthropods or other alien creatures on the big screen!
When I began this article I had intended to focus upon insects and arthropods, their adoration and usage by the media. But given what I experienced with respect to my dear mother, I also wanted to tell her story. For you see, the same phobias and feelings of anxiety, upset, disgust or outrage, that operate in people's minds when they see horror films about insects, came to bare with respect to what happened to my dear mother. I was blamed for something I had no hand in because everyone was outraged, disgusted and shocked to learn that my mother had maggots on her legs. I understand that shock as I was also shocked. But the flies came not from me or my home; they came from Jackson Hospital and an emergency room that had doors which would sling wide open, that permitted bottle flies to be attracted indoors by the odor and which did not have any or sufficient control measures in place to immediately kill any invasive flies.
Since I had once worked mass rearing flies I understand their life cycle well. I know how bottle flies behave. I understand their life cycle very well. I know they are attracted to the odor from wounds and that they can deposit live young on open wounds. I witnessed their being attracted to my ill mother as she lay waiting in the emergency room for hour after hour to receive treatment. I know those bottle flies should not have been in the emergency room. I know I could not keep them off my mother because their were too many of them. I know someone was not properly doing their job by letting the emergency room fill with bottle flies. I know all this and the Judge probably realized I knew something was not right. It was also probably realized by various people that I was someone who might cause trouble for the nursing home or Jackson Hospital, who might not cooperate and just go along with what others were doing to exploit my dear mother; that I might get very pissed off and want to sue someone in my mother's name, to stand up for her rights and proper care. So steps were taken to get me out of the picture.
It was a horror story indeed, what happened to my dear mother. The phobias people have toward maggots were used to warrant in people's minds their actions to gain power and control over my dear mother and exploit her for their own selfish benefit. Instead of everyone coming together and working to provide the best possible help for my dear mother and her family, they acted to destroy her family, to destroy her life, to financially rape, robe and exploit her for everything they might get.
It was a horror story. The flies really did no harm. My own lawyer knew this saying to me that in cases of sepsis fly maggots in wounds actually serve to clean out the infection. What did the harm was people's phobias and how they responded to my dear mother's illness. When it was finally learned that she had dementia, Greg went ballistic, kidnapped Larry and tried to have me committed for trying to defend and protect Larry from being forced against his will to into a car and rushed away. Larry was taken out-of-state, without his medication. He could have just from the upset of being dragged away. The flies hurt no one. But how people responded to them hurt me, hurt my mother and hurt Larry.
People have phobia toward insects. People have phobia toward maggots, especially when they are found upon people. But the fact is people, insects and other parasites and pests are constantly involved in a never ending competition for survival. People are bitten by mosquitoes and may get a host of diseases, including Malaria and West Nile virus. There is a serious danger that birds may become infected with a mutant strain of the flu and a world-wide pandemic may result. Insects eat our crops and cause billions of dollars in damage every year around the world. The amount spent on pest control for homes, schools, offices and places of business is billions of dollars. The flies on my mother hurt no one; but the way people reacted to the hurt me, my mother and her helpless son, my dear brother Larry!
I hope that in telling this story especially in the context of adoration of arthropods, that it will over time help educate and inform people and lessen the phobia people have with respect to insects and other arthropods. We as human beings cannot allow insects to control our lives or our behavior. We are suppose to be the more intelligent species. Yet sometimes it seem the insects and the arthropods are ones who are winning the competition, as they can even turn one human against the other, destroying families and even be agents in destroying our love and humanity!
My mother was a very wise woman. She knew the nature of my eldest brother, Greg. She knew also that I was a very loving and caring person. So she wanted me to be her guardian/conservator and she made me her attorney in fact through a Durable Power of Attorney. For others to try to rectify her wishes and desires represents a fraud, a gross crime and malicious action. This is people acting without love like the ruthless insects they are afraid of which may horrify their dreams and fill their nightmares. I am glad I am not one of them.
I love everyone, people and bugs! I love everyone, but I'm not a fool. I am not going to sit silent while people acting upon their phobias hurt and harm me or those I love. So I've told this tale and now you know the rest of the story, that when people act more like insects, without love for those they should love, it hurts, harms and destroys relationships ... exactly what insects would want, if they were humans and could want!
Please note that I do not market live insects or arthropods. Please do write to me asking for specimens. However, there are many suppliers available on the Internet. Here are a few:
