BugHunt!

BugHunt! is a laboratory exercise for teaching basic concepts of microevolution. It is based on the Evolution of Bead Bugs in Evolution by Natural Selection: A teaching module by Beth A. Bishop and Charles W. Anderson published by the Institute for Research on Teaching.

BugHunt! simulates the effect of bird predation on the composition of insect populations. Students are presented with a flowery meadow populated by "cinch bugs" and play the role of a hungry bird eating the insects. After several generations of predation, reproduction, and mutation, the composition of the population has usually changed dramatically (Sample results are available). BugHunt! features two environments which favor different adaptations. Directions to students are provided.

BugHunt is currently only available for the Macintosh computer, but a Windows version may become available in the future. BugHunt! needs about 2.5 meg of RAM to run due to the large, color, bitmapped graphics. You also really need at least a 800x600 (15inch) color monitor.

BugHunt! is freeware and may be freely distributed, but it is not in the public domain. Please send comments, questions, and bug-reports :-) to Steve Brewer <sbrewer@bio.umass.edu>.

The most recent version of Bughunt is 1.0.4, released on 6/10/95. Click here to download BugHunt! (876k)

Revised 11/10/00 Brewer