Kia Pākiki – Bug of the Year and science communication
Bug of the Year is a yearly event held by the New Zealand Entomological Society. As the Entomological Society’s Morgane Merien explained to podcast Kia Pākiki Canterbury, the contest takes inspiration from Bird of the Year while seeking to highlight the many invertebrate species that call Aotearoa New Zealand home.
Kia Pākiki Canterbury – Bug of the Year
In this Kia Pākiki Canterbury podcast, Science Communicator Tom Goulter and co-host Associate Professor Adrian Paterson from the Department of Pest-Management and Conservation at Lincoln University, interview Dr Morgane Merien from the Entomological Society of New Zealand.
Select here to view video transcript and copyright information.
Kia Pākiki Canterbury co-host Adrian Paterson comes from an entomology background and notes that the contest encompasses entrants beyond the strictest scientific definition of ‘bugs’.
“We’ve deliberately chosen the term ‘bug’ as an umbrella term,” Morgane explains. “Even though it’s not scientifically precise, it’s already in people’s minds – they kind of understand what it refers to.” This explains why Bug of the Year features not just ‘true bugs’ but also beetles, bees and wasps, butterflies and moths, spiders and more.
The five most diverse insect orders
Discover more about five New Zealand insects, each one representing a different order within the insect kingdom. Select a green label to find out more.
That also explains why the contest’s prior winners can range from ngaro huruhuru | native honey bee (Leioproctus fulvescens) to kahukura | red admiral butterfly (Vanessa gonerilla). Last year’s winner was ngāokeoke | velvet worm (Peripatus juanensis), an exotic creature many people here probably weren’t aware of. “It’s kind of an underdog,” agrees Morgane.
Peripatus/ngāokeoke
New Zealand peripatus (Peripatoides novaezealandiae), commonly called velvet worms, are unusual in that they are little changed from 500 million years ago and have their own phylum: Onychophora. They can be found throughout New Zealand, mostly in cool, shady and damp areas, and only come out at night to prey on other invertebrates, which they catch with jets of sticky fluid.
For more information on peripatus, see this Predator Free NZ article Peripatus is a sharp-shooting ‘living fossil’.
“We’ve got an incredible diversity of invertebrates here in New Zealand,” says Morgane. “We thought we’d use this competition to showcase how amazing and cool they are.”
In fact, this is one of the main functions of Bug of the Year as far as the Entomological Society is concerned. Alongside the velvet worm, entrants include the endangered Canterbury knobbled weevil (Hadramphus tuberculatus) and the distinctive-looking Neotrichozetes spinulosa. This last creature is informally known as the hellraiser mite for its resemblance to the villain from the 1987 horror movie. First discovered in Argentina, it was only in 2025 that the mite has been found in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Fred the larva
Fred the Thread is a caterpillar that grows into a small moth. The caterpillar was the basis of a detective hunt by the scientists at Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research.
New invertebrate life is being uncovered all the time. In its 2025 launch episode, Kia Pākiki Canterbury spoke with entomologist Cor Vink about a new genus of jumping spiders discovered in Canterbury. The Science Learning Hub has also detailed the hunt for Fred the Thread (Houdinia flexilissima), perhaps the world’s thinnest caterpillar. Stories like these make Bug of the Year more than just a popularity contest. It’s a way of bringing the public news about our dynamic ecosystem and diverse insect population.
You can’t protect something that you don’t know about. You can’t care about something that you have no idea even exists. The main goal is bringing awareness to these invertebrates.
Morgane points to the way numerous organisations use Bug of the Year as an opportunity to communicate up-to-the-minute scientific discoveries and stories. She works as a Science and Curatorial Communicator at Canterbury Museum and says that the organisation is championing the Canterbury knobbled weevil, whose endangered status is a far cry from the widespread populations it once enjoyed.
Canterbury knobbled weevil (Hadramphus tuberculatus)
The Canterbury knobbled weevil (Hadramphus tuberculatus) was first described in 1877 from samples found in Canterbury. It was thought extinct in 1922 but was rediscovered in 2004. The weevils are now classed as critically endangered.
Forest and Bird, meanwhile, is supporting the avatar moth (Arctesthes avatar), another species threatened by changes to Aotearoa New Zealand’s ecosystem. Collected during a citizen science BioBlitz, this species’ habitat is threatened by open-cast mining and it’s listed as nationally critical on the Department of Conservation’s New Zealand Threat Classification System.
The avatar moth is a perfect example of how events like Bug of the Year serve as occasions for science communication. “We need people to study them,” explains Morgane, “but we need the money for it. So this is part of that goal: awareness, to get more funding, to get more research.”
All about insects
Insects offer stimulating content with which teachers can feed student curiosity and grow science knowledge and capabilities.
Standing up for your favourite entrant in the Bug of the Year contest isn’t just a bit of fun. The competition is an exercise in public science communication and a forum for all sorts of important stories about Aotearoa New Zealand’s dynamic, diverse invertebrate population to reach a wider audience.
“I think more people should care about these invertebrates,” says Morgane. “About these really important bugs. If you care about the birds, then, by default, you should also be caring about the bugs.”
Listen to the full episode here, and find out more about Bug of the Year at the Entomological Society of New Zealand’s page.
2026 winner
On 20 February 2026 the avatar moth (Arctesthes avatar) was crowned the 2026 Bug of the Year.
Related content
Insect taxonomy – learn the difference between species, genus, family and order in our article about how invertebrates are classified.
What’s so special about insects? – find out why these little animals are so important to our world and ecosystem.
All about insects – is a teacher PLD webinar to help educators in the study of all things entomological.
The Science Learning Hub has many more resources about insects in our Living World – Insects resource.
Useful links
Visit our We love bugs! Pinterest board with links to resources and community activities.
What is this bug? from Bioeconomy Science Institute Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Group is a handy guide to common invertebrates of New Zealand.
Visit the Entomological Society of New Zealand’s website to keep up with the organisers of Bug of the Year.
Acknowledgement
This interview was excerpted from an episode of Kia Pākiki Canterbury, a monthly podcast about science, technology and humanities presented by the Canterbury branch of the Royal Society Te Apārangi.
Kia Pākiki logo
Kia Pākiki Canterbury is a monthly podcast about science, technology and the humanities presented by the Canterbury branch of the Royal Society Te Apārangi.
