Analyn Cabras studies beetles. That’s a big job. There are more than 400,000 species of beetles on Earth. They can be found on every continent but Antarctica. They can live where it’s hot or cold. They can live where it’s wet or dry. Some are really tiny. Others are as big as your hand!
Cabras researches beetles in the Philippines.
This beetle is about the size of Cabras' thumbnail.
Cabras looks for beetles on Mindanao. It is an island in the Philippines. Not much is known about the beetles that live here. This place has not been studied much.
Philippines
ASIA
Cabras looks at a beetle up close.
Island Surprises
So far, Cabras’ work has been full of surprises. She has found many beetles called jeweled weevils. She has also found many new beetles. “It feels like every time we go into the field, we discover at least one new species,” she says. She and her team found four new species in one small stretch. That’s a lot!
Know Your Scientist
In her work studying beetles, Analyn Cabras plays many roles:
Biologist:
an expert on living organisms
Coleopterist:
a person who studies or collects beetles
Conservationist:
a person who acts for the protection of the environment and wildlife
Ecologist:
an expert in the relations of organisms to one another and to their natural surroundings
Taxonomist:
a biologist that names and groups organisms into categories