Devon Dine's arm went stiff and his eyes widened as he watched the Vietnamese walkingstick wrap its six legs around his hand and crawl up his arm.
"It looked very toyish," the 7-year-old said at the Department of Entomology's second Bug House open house of the summer.
Butterflies, centipedes and grasshoppers pinned and labeled in frames covered the walls and tables in one room. A felt board hung with insect body parts, legs and wings for children to mix and match to create their own bug.
The adjoining room was filled with glass cases housing live insects and arthropods, including tarantulas, cockroaches and scorpions.
"All the kids are interested in bugs, so it's perfect," said Joel Kuiper of Lansing, who brought his son and three friends to the Bug House.
The Bug House opened in the fall of 1996 to help children understand what entomology is, said Barb Stinnett, outreach coordinator for the Department of Entomology. The summer open houses were added because children are out of school, and there was a lot of interest, she said.
"It's a great facility," Stinnett said. "It's fun, and kids love it — parents even like it."
The Bug House gives tours year-round, and many day cares and schools come to learn about insects, she said.
Since it opened, the popularity of the Bug House has grown, along with its collections. Some of the bug displays were put together by individuals in the Department of Entomology, she said.
"Some are bought, some are donated and some are collected," Stinnett said.
Bug House tours are led by MSU students who teach the children about the different types of insects and arthropods, what purpose they have and where they are from, said Lauren Bailey, a fisheries and wildlife graduate student.
A large, thin glass case filled with bees stood in the corner of the room, and a square glass tunnel led out the window so the bees could get in and out.
The beehive is an instrument to show how bee colonies work, Bailey said. The glass tunnel leads the bees outside so they can collect pollen and bring it back to the hive.
"If the queen bee decides to leave, she may take a swarm with her, but they stay here for the most part," she said.
Anna Fiedler, an entomology graduate student, stood over the glass case of the Bug House's newest member, a Zebra Tarantula.
"She's very sweet. You can hold her," Fiedler said.
Female tarantulas can live up to 30 years, she said, adding that their life span makes them a real commitment when getting one as a pet. The spider's venom is not strong enough to hurt anyone, Fiedler said, but it feels like a bee sting.
"I think, for the kids, the best thing is seeing all these insects and being able to hold some things they wouldn't find in Michigan," she said. "For me, the best thing is the curiosity and excitement of the kids. It reminds me why I'm studying what I'm studying."
