Meet the Rare Beetle Ohio State Students Are Working to Save

Deep inside Ohio’s forests and grasslands, a tiny insect is getting a long-overdue comeback, and students at The Ohio State University are helping lead the charge.

Once common throughout much of the eastern United States, the American burying beetle has steadily disappeared over the years as habitats got smaller and ecosystems shifted. What was once a familiar insect across at least 35 states now survives in only fragments of its former range.

Researchers and students at Ohio State are working to make sure the rare beetle sticks around for generations to come.

American burying beetles act like nature’s cleanup crew, locating small dead animals, burying them underground and using them to nourish their young. In the process, nutrients are recycled back into the soil while pest insects, including flies, are deterred.

At The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in Wooster, the United Titanium Bug Zoo is joining conservation partners to help rebuild the population — one beetle at a time. The process includes breeding beetles with scientific matchmaking, simulated winters and carefully prepared rodent carcasses.

The Bug Zoo got involved with the effort after program manager and zookeeper Jeni Filbrun visited the insectarium at Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden during a staff retreat. The visit sparked conversations about expanding conservation efforts in Wooster and creating a new hands-on project for students and staff.

“We were looking to elevate our conservation efforts and find a new project,” Filbrun said in an April 29 press release.

This spring alone, staff members prepared eight breeding pairs and discovered 283 larvae developing inside the containers, according to Filbrun.

Those beetles are expected to mature before being released June 23 at The Wilds in southeastern Ohio, where researchers and volunteers will monitor how the insects adapt and survive in the wild.

“We are planning on continuing the breeding in the spring of 2027 and for many years to come,” Filbrun said in the press release. “I’m also looking forward to bringing in graduate and undergraduate students who can work on this project.”

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