Join the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History and the Oklahoma Microscopy Society in celebrating 20 years of the Oklahoma Ugly Bug contest with an exhibition of larger-than life photos of insects, all captured by the contest’s 2016 winners! The exhibition is on now through September 4, 2017.

Open to all Oklahoma elementary schools, the annual “ugly bug” competition is designed to get students interested in microscopy and entomology at a young age. The rules are simple: Each school can submit one bug — the uglier, the better — and a complete scientific description of the insect. Entries are processed at SEM labs across the state, including Oklahoma State University, Phillips 66 and the Samuel Roberts Noble Microscopy Laboratory on the University of Oklahoma campus, and imaged by a scanning electron microscope. The school with the winning entry, judged by a group of OMS members, receives a Leica stereomicroscope.

Check out the exhibit to examine the deep beauty of bugs that’s not visible with the naked eye!

Wondering what bugs are featured above? Answers for you below.

Photo 2: Acorn Weevil
Photo 3: Butterfly
Photo 4: Moth
Photo 5: Pompilid Wasp
Photo 6: Praying Mantis
Photo 7: Rhinoceros Beetle
Photo 8: Robber Fly
Photo 9: Tiger Beetle
Photo 10: Wolf Spider