Contact
I can be reached at arthroverts @ gmail .com. I am always happy to talk about invertebrates, conservation, and the sciences.
About Arthroverts.org
My name is Jessiah, though I’m better known by my pseudonym Arthroverts, and I’m an invertebrate lover, writer, and citizen scientist. This website began back in 2017 when I started keeping and breeding invertebrates as a hobby. Inspired by the blogs of Tristan Shanahan and Joshua Campos, I used arthroverts.org as a platform to share my experiences cultivating some of what Piotr Naskrecki called “the smaller majority”: tarantulas, scorpions, centipedes, millipedes, roaches, beetles, and the occasional snake.
My focus has shifted since then to reporting on the intriguing and bizarre stories in the world of “bugs.” Most of what I write now is about the people doing some of the most exciting work in the invertebrate worlds, original journalism investigating the mysteries and wonders of lost species, and the occasional reflection on conservation and biodiversity. Humanity is surrounded by incredible life-forms, and it is my privilege to shine light on some of these more obscure parts of creation.
About Me
I’ve loved creepy-crawlies ever since I was kid, but I started keeping invertebrates seriously in 2016, with the goal of acquiring species of every major invertebrate order (I didn’t quite make it, ha ha). Starting around 2018, I began researching the various “ologies” of invertebrate study. Between 2018-2022, I read all the academic articles I could, attended events like the annual Myriapodology Meet-Up hosted by the Marek Lab at Virginia Tech, scrolled iNaturalist obsessively, and pursued university classes in biology.
While this was an exciting time for me, it also made me realize that the current scientific-academic complex is not going to save the natural world. The staggering amount of resources needed to train and supply a single professional researcher means that science cannot keep pace with the rate of discovery, nor the conservation needs, of charismatic megafauna, let alone the much more diverse, and much less studied, invertebrates.
Nevertheless, I learned a lot during this period, and with a broader perspective of the world, I looked a bit more skeptically at my invertebrate-keeping hobby. I was horrified by the arrogant, trophy-pet mentality of many enthusiasts, and shocked by how over-collecting was, if at times bemoaned, largely accepted by the community. The ongoing Cubaris Craze and the rapacious collection of American Aphonopelma and Mexican Brachypelma for the pet trade were perfect examples of what I had come to hate.
All these realizations complexified my understanding of what it means to be an invertebrate lover, and more than that, a good steward of this Earth. I still keep invertebrates and contribute to scientific research, but I keep a healthy skepticism of both the pet hobby and the scientific-academic complex. I’ve come to believe that the best way we can study and protect invertebrates in captivity and in the wild is by bringing the best insights of both amateurs and professionals together in conversation.
Today, I’m a professional writer and editor with a deep love for nature. This blog has gone through multiple phases in my journey of keeping, breeding, and studying invertebrates, and it will continue to do so. What hasn’t changed is my thankfulness for living in such a beautiful world, and my commitment to protecting it as best I can. My hope is that the stories on this blog inspire you of the same.
“For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together with labor pains until now.”
Find Me Elsewhere
Invertebrate Club of Southern California
The Millipede Enthusiasts’ Database