Flies and wasps dominate each of our weekly collections. Many are large and showy, and there is a huge variety. Others are extremely small – but they all play a role in the forest ecosystem. And all will be barcoded.

With special permission, we view each sample collection before bagging and storage. Any specimens removed for further study are carefully labelled, and we take great care in handling. It is critical to the validity of the GMP data that every insect, no matter how small, is recorded and processed as part of the appropriate sample.

It’s not ALL flies, wasps, ants and bees. Many other orders are represented in the mix. In this image alone there are various beetles (Coleoptera), bugs (Hemiptera), moths (Lepidoptera), a cockroach (Blattodea) and grasshoppers (Orthoptera).