Franklin Pest Solutions is proud to be sponsoring the Bug Bowl intern for the third year in a row. The 2024 intern is Colleen Murphy, a 21-year-old junior majoring in Insect Biology at Purdue. Her childhood in Salem, Indiana provided for many summers full of bug collection in nearby fields, waterways and forests.
“I love bugs because they are all around us, are colorful and interesting to learn about,” Murphy said. “I am currently working as a curational assistant in the Purdue Entomological Research Collection so I get to interact with and study bugs all the time,” she said.
“Our partnership with Bug Bowl is a highlight each year,” Janelle Iaccino, Franklin’s bug expert known as The Bug Girl said. “We love sponsoring the interns at Bug Bowl. It’s so great to be a part of the communities we serve and to foster young women in STEM.”
A love of bugs is just one requirement for the Bug Bowl internship. Championing kids is another one. “I am excited to help with the kids art show set up before Bug Bowl starts and seeing all the fun, whimsical drawings all the kids submit,” Murphy said. “I will also be dismantling all the art and returning each piece to the individual artists.
More than 600 original drawings of bugs will hang from the walls at Bug Bowl where visitors will get to taste honey, participate in an array of vibrant interactive activities for the entire family, pet bugs at a live bug zoo, visit the Cockroach Colosseum and become familiar with their favorite insects. Murphy’s favorite is the weevil “because this beetle comes in many different colors and has a very cute snout,” she said.
Like Iaccino who had a pet tarantula she kept in her locker in high school, Murphy’s love of bugs started early. She enjoyed collecting insects every summer for 4-H and completed the insect collection project almost every year of her 10 years with 4-H.
“One year, I helped raise monarch butterfly eggs/caterpillars I found on milkweed around my house. That was an interesting experience since I was able to observe the monarch butterfly lifecycle. The caterpillars were very cute, and the adult butterflies were beautiful. That is one of the most memorable experiences I’ve had with insects,” she said.
Purdue Bug Bowl’s Betty Bee mascot will also be on hand, greeting attendees. Studying and protecting honeybees and native pollinators is a priority for Purdue’s Entomology Department and for Franklin.
Bug Bowl started as a cockroach race more than 30 years ago by a Purdue entomology professor. Its popularity bloomed after a radio personality mentioned it, drawing more than 100 people to the event. The event is part of the Purdue College of Agriculture Spring Fest taking place Saturday, April 13, 2024.
About Franklin Pest Solutions, LLC
Since 1929, Franklin Pest Solutions and sister company Rose Pest Solutions have been trusted in the Midwest to keep homes and businesses free from insects, rodents, and more. Using cutting-edge technology, environmentally friendly methods, and personalized unique solutions, Franklin and Rose are dedicated to creating and maintaining healthier living environments. Owned by the Dold Family, Franklin Pest Solutions proudly serves communities in Indiana and Kentucky, and Rose Pest Solutions proudly serves all of Chicagoland, the Greater Milwaukee area, and South Central Wisconsin. For more information, see www.franklinpestsolutions.com and www.rosepestcontrol.com.