"Dissection of a stink bug’s gut" by Samuel Cia, ETH Zurich
JURY DISTINCTION FOR CATEGORY 1. OBJECT OF STUDY
Entry in category 1. Object of study; Copyright CC-BY-NC-ND: Samuel Cia
Description:
These days, the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, is a major invasive insect pest in European horticulture. By analysing the bug’s gut microbiota, we hope to find entomopathogenic bacteria which could be used as biological control agents. To this end, stink bugs had first to be caught and dissected. This image shows the dissected digestive tract of an adult H. halys, including fore-, mid- and hind guts as well as the insect’s red-coloured symbiont-inhabiting crypts. The gut dissection and image were made under a dissecting microscope. Neither the organs nor the image were artificially coloured.
Comment of the jury:
A beautiful and naturally coloured image of a very obscure field of research. While the jury liked the fragility and poetry the image conveys, this research into the gut microbiota of small bugs also points to an epistemological paradox: the careful study of entomopathogenic bacteria is being done primarily to find ways of controlling populations of the stink bug, which is considered a pest in horticulture.
"Dissection of a stink bug’s gut" by Samuel Cia, ETH Zurich
JURY DISTINCTION FOR CATEGORY 1. OBJECT OF STUDY
Entry in category 1. Object of study; Copyright CC-BY-NC-ND: Samuel Cia
Description:
These days, the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, is a major invasive insect pest in European horticulture. By analysing the bug’s gut microbiota, we hope to find entomopathogenic bacteria which could be used as biological control agents. To this end, stink bugs had first to be caught and dissected. This image shows the dissected digestive tract of an adult H. halys, including fore-, mid- and hind guts as well as the insect’s red-coloured symbiont-inhabiting crypts. The gut dissection and image were made under a dissecting microscope. Neither the organs nor the image were artificially coloured.
Comment of the jury:
A beautiful and naturally coloured image of a very obscure field of research. While the jury liked the fragility and poetry the image conveys, this research into the gut microbiota of small bugs also points to an epistemological paradox: the careful study of entomopathogenic bacteria is being done primarily to find ways of controlling populations of the stink bug, which is considered a pest in horticulture.