Bugs Need Heroes
On each episode of Bugs Need Heroes, an ecologist and an illustrator team-up to create a new insect-inspired super hero. The finished characters are posted to our social media pages and at BugsNeedHeroes.com Email us questions about bugs at BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman. Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman. Edited by Derek Conrad. Character artwork by Amanda Niday. ”Ladybug Castle” by Rolemusic is licensed under a Attribution 3.0 International License.
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Episodes
Sunday Jan 29, 2023
Sunday Jan 29, 2023
The Bombardier Beetle is a bug we've wanted to cover since the beginning and now that Derek's basement isn't flooded, we can! There are over 500 species of these beetles with some surprising life histories and a shared appreciation of boiling enemies alive with fake acid. Also Amanda and Kelly talk about weddings and dragons.
Kelly's field notes and Amanda's artwork for this character:
https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/explodey-joe
Send us questions and suggestions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music by Rolemusic.
Monday Jan 16, 2023
Monday Jan 16, 2023
We continue to assemble our Bee Team with a gentle giant. We discuss their similarities and differences in life history to the other two bees we have discussed. And it wouldn't be a Bugs Need Heroes episode without sneaking a little bit of art history discussion at the end!
Kelly's field notes and Amanda's artwork for this character:
https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/the-fuzzy-friend
Send us questions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music by Rolemusic.
Sunday Dec 25, 2022
Sunday Dec 25, 2022
The cave we keep Producer Derek in unfortunately flooded and he hasn't been able to polish off this week's episode! But no worries, Amanda is here with some apologetic bug jokes to tide you over until (hopefully) next week! She does not apologize for their badness. Happy Holidays!
Sunday Dec 11, 2022
Sunday Dec 11, 2022
Chocolate midges (Genus: Forcipomyia) are tiny flies that do one big thing for us. In size? Miniscule. In impact? Monstrous! It's a very distractible week on the pod. Topics range from super hero movies to royal journals to extinct birds! It's a very wild and sexy episode of Bugs Need Heroes.
Kelly's field notes and Amanda's artwork for this character: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/the-bean-bosses
Send us questions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music by Rolemusic.
Saturday Nov 26, 2022
Saturday Nov 26, 2022
We decided to watch and discuss the new release on Disney+, the 2022 Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. We talk about how Mantis, played by Pom Klementieff, compares to actual an actual mantis and whatever else wanders through our heads in this special holiday episode.
Recommended Links!
Kevin Conroy's "Finding Batman" comic from DC Pride 2022 Annual #1: https://www.dcuniverseinfinite.com/comics/book/dc-pride-2022-1/38309538-e865-422a-a732-79cfdc205440/"Why 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2' hero Drax resonates with the autism community" by Michael Rothman at ABC News: https://abcnews.go.com/amp/Entertainment/guardians-hero-drax-resonates-autism-community/story?id=47283398
"Disneyland Cats: The Feral Cats Who Live In The Park": https://insidethemagic.net/2020/04/disneyland-cats-cb1mmb/
Pictures of some of Disneyland's resident cats: https://www.instagram.com/disneylandcats/
Send us questions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music by Rolemusic.
Sunday Nov 13, 2022
Sunday Nov 13, 2022
Bust out the picnic baskets and settle in for some social wasp discussion. The newest member of the Bee Team is fast, thorough, and sharp as a tack. Amanda confronts her prejudices after being stung. Kelly has never been stung. Producer Derek has been stung over twenty times.
Kelly's field notes and Amanda's artwork for this character: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/ms-buzz
Send us questions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music by Rolemusic.
Sunday Oct 30, 2022
Sunday Oct 30, 2022
In this episode, Kelly and Amanda invite Producer Derek on to talk about his heroes: the bats! What if Bruce Wayne had been bitten by a radioactive bat? Is Robin really the perfect partner for the caped crusader? Do bats really love a dark night? And most importantly, what is the cutest bat?
Some references on the episode page: https://www.bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/bats-need-heroes
Send us questions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music is Ladybug Castle by Rolemusic.
Monday Oct 17, 2022
Monday Oct 17, 2022
This episode focuses on a subspecies of the Eastern Honey Bee, Apis cerana japonica, which has some unique and impressive behaviors to thwart would-be predators. Kelly discusses the Better Common Names Project, bee balls, and jello. Amanda discusses the times she was nearly killed by toothpaste, the judgement of a toddler, and the "murder hornets" of Washington state.
Kelly's field notes and Amanda's artwork for this character: https://bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/the-burning-bee
Send us questions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music by Rolemusic.
Sunday Oct 02, 2022
Sunday Oct 02, 2022
Content Warning for this episode: There is a story about the loss of a pet and brief mention of suicide from minutes 9-14.
In this episode, Amanda flexes her art history degree and Kelly adds another item to her shopping list. An example of remarkable behavioral convergence and sexual dimorphism gives us a double episode of big boy beetles with feudal stylings.
Kelly's field notes and Amanda's artwork for these characters: https://bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/the-big-boys
Send us questions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music by Rolemusic.
Sunday Sep 18, 2022
Sunday Sep 18, 2022
Respect the hyphen! This episode is all about Peter Parker and how his powers compare to actual spiders. Is Spider-man amazing or simply spectacular? Is Tom Holland the best Spider-man yet? Where did Peter get his sick dance moves? Does the MCU need more dancing??? We have a lot of thoughts about these things.
Kelly's field notes and Amanda's artwork: https://bugsneedheroes.com/episodes/the-friendly-neighborhood-hero
Send us questions! BugsNeedHeroes@gmail.com
Join us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bugsneedheroes/
Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bugsneedheroes
Join us on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/BugsNeedHeroes
Hosted by Amanda Niday and Kelly Zimmerman with editing by Derek Conrad.
Created by Derek Conrad and Kelly Zimmerman.
Character artwork by Amanda Niday.
Music by Rolemusic.