Thirty - foot telescopic nets , bug - collecting video games , and beetle pets : Entomology in modern Japan

As American entomologists, we are often unaware of how insects are integrated into other cultures. In Asia, insects first appeared on traditional Chinese and Japanese ornamental artwork dating before 600 A.D. (Crambfrot, 1994). During the Meiji period (1868-1912), mushiya, or insect shops, sold collecting equipment and singing insects in cages (Laurent, 2001). Although there are no longer insect shops that specialize in singing insects, insects are still integrated into the bustling metropolises of modern Japan—charismatic insects regularly appear on candy wrappers and children’s toys and are the central theme to “Bug museums, bug zoos, bug exhibits in department stores, street-corner vendors selling crawling, flying and creeping creatures. Much of Japan may have been paved over, but the Japanese retain a special fondness in their hearts for the insects ...” (Hiatt and Shapiro, 1988: A29). many popular video games. In fact, the modern market for insects and entomological accessories in Japan has annual sales of tens of millions of dollars (Kristof, 1999). The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of how insects are integrated into Japanese culture today. The paper is organized into four sections, each of which focuses on a key issue pertaining to insects in modern Japanese culture: 1) Japanese children and entomological education; 2) entomological supply stores and the unique equipment used by Japanese entomologists; 3) the plethora of insect collectors and personal insect collections in Japan; and 4) the recent popularity of breeding and selling live beetles. This paper is not about institutional research, but the large Japanese population of insect hobbyists, enthusiasts, and the culture that surrounds them.