Dana Michaud is a familiar sight in the museum's entomology collection lab, where he has spent countless hours volunteering. Dana's indoor work is backed up by an equally impressive number of hours outdoors, as he has roamed forests and fields collecting all types of insects, from beetles to bark lice. Together with the late David “Bug Man” Bourque, Dana amassed a critical and impressive Maine-centric insect collection. Much to the benefit of the museum, Dana has now donated this collection and incorporated it into the museum's holdings.



The focus of Dana's entomological interests is beetles (order Coleoptera). The large and highly diverse groups, such as ground beetles and weevils, draw most of his attention, but it is the thrill of the hunt for uncommon “oddball” groups that gets him the most excited. One such group is the Ripiphoridae, or wedge-shaped beetles. There are six species known to occur in Maine, yet they are incredibly difficult to find because the adult beetles live for only a day or two. The excitement of finding, observing, and catching rare insects is what has driven Dana to tirelessly document Maine’s insect fauna.

Beyond beetles, Dana and David’s joint collection also includes thousands of specimens from all of Maine’s other insect orders. These specimens represent hundreds of species that weren’t previously held in the museum’s collection, as well as dozens of insects that had not been previously recorded in Maine. Dana and David’s dedication to documenting Maine’s insect fauna, as well as their generous donation, have helped make the insect collection the crown jewel of the museum’s natural science holdings.

Thank you, Dana, for your endless and invaluable contributions as a Maine State Museum volunteer!