by Peter Smithers.

The speaker views insects as not just cool but as the most diverse, ubiquitous and numerous group of animals on the planet and he will explain how insects basically run the world.  This talk will introduce the vast range of body shapes and sizes, behaviours and lifestyles to be found in the insect world.  It will also demonstrate how they play a vital role in maintaining the environment in which we live. He will explore their complex lives, the unappreciated beauty of many species plus the sheer strangeness of others. Finally, he will focus on human attitudes to insects, our impact on them as well as their impact on us.

Peter Smithers is an entomologist who worked at the University of Plymouth until he retired. He has a broad interest in the invertebrate world with much of his research focusing on the spiders. He has taken part in many expeditions and student field trips to explore the magic of the insect world, ranging from Ecuador to Borneo.  In the later part of his career he became fascinated by the potential of insects to provide protein for a growing world population and chaired the Royal Entomological Societies Special Interest group on Insects as Food and Feed.  He has written many papers and articles plus a memoir of his encounters with insects, Small Game Hunter.