"How did Mrs. Feynman get interested in studying caterpillars?" you might ask.

Well, I grew up in a house next to a creek, and I spent a lot of time catching frogs, trying to build dams, and throwing mud at my brother. It made me really love wetlands!

I knew that when I grew up, I would do something that would let me continue to play in the mud. So now I'm a teacher, and not only do I get to play in the mud, I take all my students with me at least a couple times a year. I hope they (and you) will also learn to love wetlands and grow up wanting to help them.

This is a picture of me working in the wetlands near my school. We have a project to control the Purple Loosestrife plants (the ones with flowers in the picture). They are an INVASIVE SPECIES - that means that they don't naturally live in this area. They are taking over the wetlands and making it hard for the plants that do naturally live in this area (like the cattails which have brown tubes and look like they are growing out of my head in the picture).

You have probably heard the word "INVADE" before - maybe in a book, or in a game you played. What is the connection between the invaders in your book or game and the Purple Loosestrife in the field?

Why you should be PSYCHED about studying BUGS!!!

When I tell people that I am going to spend 10 days mucking around in a Louisiana swamp with bugs, I get two different responses.

Response #1: "That is so COOL!! Can I come with you?"

Response #2: "YUCK - I'd rather have big guys poke me with sticks!"

Like it or not - bugs play a really important role in everyone's life. Think about insects that pollinate flowers - without them, we'd have trouble growing food. Think about mosquitos - without them, how would we truly appreciate summer vacation?

Caterpillars and the creatures they interact with are just as important in their ecosystem. They can teach us a lot - I hope that by the time my trip is finished, you'll be one of the people who wants to come with me!