Corn Elevator

An old corn elevator used to load corn into the top of a silo. This kind of device is often driven by an exposed power take-off from a tractor and has caused a lot of injuries.

Insect Eggs

A worker at the NCSU Insectary picks up insect eggs from a petri dish and places them in a plastic cup filled with a special growth medium.

Tobacco Hornworms

These are tobacco hornworm larvae. No wonder they can strip a field bare in just a few days! Yes, that's my hand in the photo--the things I do for writing.

Moth Pupae

These are the pupae of the tobacco hornworm. Movie trivia: If you saw Silence of the Lambs, this is the object that was removed from one victim's throat--though the moth in the poster is a different kind of moth!

Tobacco Hornworm Moth

This is the adult tobacco hornworm. Each moth can lay up to 2,000 eggs. The eggs hatch four days later and the cycle begins again.

Arthropod Collection

The NCSU keeps an exotic arthropod collection. Faculty and grad students borrow insects from this collection to display when they speak to kids at local schools. That should get their attention!

Giant African Millipede

If agitated, they can excrete a bacterial poison that burns and stains the skin. Thanks for telling me.

Want to hold it?

That's what she asked me--I declined. Look at the size of that thing!

Rearing Chamber

A Biotronette rearing chamber for raising insects at precisely controlled temperature and humidity. Rearing chambers like this one are described in the story.

Gardner Hall

Gardner Hall, home of the department of Entomology at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. This is where Nick Polchak has his office and lab. It's also where he teaches when he can't avoid it.

Biological Resources Facility

The Biological Resources Facility at NC State where animals and insects are raised to serve the research needs of the university. The NCSU insectary (ground floor) was closed down in the spring of 2009.