Bug of the Year Collection Tour 2026
11 February 2026 - 11 February 2026
Region(s): Wellington
Type(s): presentations
Buzzing for bugs? Don’t miss this rare opportunity to get up close with this year’s Bug of the Year nominees.
Lead Curator Invertebrates Dr Julia Kasper and Curator Invertebrates Phil Sirvid will lead a behind-the-scenes tour in Te Papa's natural history collection.
Learn about the unsung heroes of Aotearoa New Zealand’s biodiversity and how they impact our ecosystems.
The evening tour will feature mini talks from bug enthusiasts campaigning for their favourite nominee.
The free 1-hour tours take place at:
11am
2pm
5.30pm
Tickets include insect-inspired refreshment and must be reserved in advance.
Location: Te Papa Collection Area, 169 Tory Street (NOTE: this event is not at the main Te Papa museum)
For more information: www.tepapa.govt.nz/visit/events/bug-of-the-year-collection-tour.
Te Papa are supporting Apsona, the sapphire spider fly this year, find out why in their blog article.
Related content
For more on insects, see these key articles:
All about insects – recorded webinar
Label the insect – activity
Identifying bugs – activity
Discover how insects use their antennae in this fascinating article.
The article Living World – Insects, provides links to the wide range of Science Learning Hub resources for teachers related to insects in the Living World strand of the New Zealand Curriculum. This is a very handy one-stop-place to see all our articles, activities, and a range of media.
Visit our We love bugs! Pinterest board for links to more resources and community activities.