Collecting Insects in Brightest Africa (Fall Course)

6 Wednesdays from October 8 - November 12, 6 - 7:30pm

Location: at the Parkway Central Library, Free Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street (between 19th and 20th streets), Philadelphia. This course meets in the Science and Wellness department (room 202).

This course requires pre-registration. Separate registration is required for each student. Sign up here or call 215-763-6529 x14 for assistance.

Collecting Insects in Brightest Africa will chronicle the adventures of hunting ‘small’ game in Africa. Part travelogue, part natural history and entomology, the course will weave its way through the history of collecting insects in Africa to the present. The stage is set by highlighting several pivotal early African Insect collectors. Then the African insect fauna will be presented and discussed from recent collecting expeditions to South Africa, the Kingdom of Lesotho, Namibia, Morocco and Malawi. Insect collecting protocols and the importance of collecting will also be addressed.

1. Wednesday, October 8, 2025

Introduction to African Exploration - Early Explorers, Insect Collecting in the 18th and 19th Centuries.

2. Wednesday, October 15, 2025

Equatorial Africa - The Vanderbilt Expedition of 1934.

3. Wednesday, October 22, 2025

The Practice of Collecting. South Africa, KwaZulu Natal.

4. Wednesday, October 29, 2025

The Drakensberg - Collecting Grasshoppers at 10,000 feet by helicopter.

5. Wednesday, November 5, 2025

The Desert Fauna of Namibia and Morocco, the mountains of Lesotho.

6. Wednesday, November 12, 2025

Collecting Grasshoppers in Malawi.

Beryl Markham, West with the Night, 1942. (Still in print in paperback.)

Alzada Carlisle Kistner, An Affair with Africa: Expeditions and Adventures Across a Continent, 1998.

Charles Griffiths & Mike Picker, Pocket Guide: Insects of South Africa, 2016.

Daniel Otte & Carin Thom, Limpopo River Tales, 2017.

Greg Cowper is an Entomologist at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University. He is one of the caretakers of the four million specimens that encompass the Academy’s insect collection. He assists in the curation of the Orthoptera section of the collection, the grasshoppers, crickets and katydids. In 2008 he began traveling to Southern Africa collecting and focusing on Orthoptera, studying grasshopper speciation, and adding new specimens and species to the collection. He has worked on connecting field notes to specimens and the species-specific nature of Orthopteran acoustics. Since 2011 he has maintained an installation at Eastern State Penitentiary focused on the biodiversity inside the walls of the historic Pr*son. Presently he is working on an invertebrate inventory of Valley Forge National Historical Park. He has taught courses for the Wagner since 2014.

What is the cost?

Wagner courses are free; donations are encouraged!

Are there minimum age requirements to enter the course?

The adult lecture courses are offered on an introductory college level. They are open to anyone seeking an introduction to various areas of the sciences as well as those familiar with the subjects who wish to broaden and update their knowledge. The courses also provide an excellent opportunity for motivated junior high and high school students to supplement their current science courses and to help prepare them for further study in these fields at a college level. The courses are appropriate as well for teachers seeking to expand their knowledge.

What are my transportation/parking options for getting to and from the course?

The Free Library of Philadelphia Parkway Central Branch is located between 19th and 20th Streets on the Parkway. It is close to many SEPTA lines, including buses, Regional Rail, and the Broad Street Line Race/Vine station. Most parking near the library is metered street parking. There is also a Philadelphia Parking Authority lot behind the library on Callowhill Street between 19th and 20th Streets.

Is the building wheelchair accessible?

Yes. The Wood Street entrance (at the back of the building) is wheelchair accessible and there are elevators in the building. Enter Wood Street by going south on 19th Street and drive west towards 20th Street. If the gate is down press the buzzer and security will open the gate. There are handicapped parking places right next to the building.

How can I contact the organizer with any questions?

Click the "Contact the Organizer" link, email [email protected], or call 215-763-6529 x14.

Images: Above: South Africa Pyrgomorph and Dragon's Back Drakensberg. Below: South Africa. Photographs by Greg Cowper.

The Wagner Free Institute of Science is a National Historic Landmark natural history museum and educational institution. It was founded in 1855 by William Wagner, a Philadelphian who had a dream of providing free science education to anyone who wanted to learn, regardless of background or ability to pay. Today, the Wagner offers more programs to more people than ever before! Your support helps us provide free education through its museum and a wide range of courses, lectures, field trips, and children’s science programs.

In keeping with its original charter, admission to the museum is FREE—donations are suggested to ensure the future and quality of Wagner's free education programs and to preserve its National Landmark building and collections.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Parkway Central Library, 1901 Vine Street, Philadelphia, United States